The Pokemon Adventures of Team 7
by AoiCherry
Summary: Now that Team 7 has gotten their starter Pokemon, they start out on their journeys. Together, they fend off *two* teams, that aim to cause chaos in their region. Together, the trio gets stronger. Can they fend off the teams AND fulfill their dreams?
1. Introductions

I've been fantasizing about this fic for a long time now. At first, I didn't write it, 'cuz there were a lot of them in fanfiction, but I can't stand it anymore! So, here it is! This first chapter is going to introduce the characters.

Disclaimer: I DON'T own Naruto or Pokemon in ANY way! That applies for all chapters in this fic!

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**Introductions **

Sakura Haruno

**Gender**: Female

**Age**: 12 years old (I'm starting at 12, not 10)

**Outfit**: A red two-piece outfit, with a tight, pink, sleeveless shirt underneath, and pink shorts. The red is the cover-up sleeveless jacket, and a skirt. (Much like the bottom part of her 12-year old outfit in the anime.) She's also wearing a pink headband on her head, like the way she wore her Konoha headband. She's wearing red, white, and pink shoes and a watch as well. Here's the link to her outfit, and I don't own that pic, I just got it off deviantart: http://serabie00 (dot) deviantart (dot) com / art / Sakura-Pokemon-Form-78454386

**Bio**: When she was young, Sakura was often made fun of by other people. That all changed when she met a girl named _Ino Yamanaka_. Ino made Sakura more confident, and even showed her what attacks her _Azurill_ could perform. Ino told Sakura that when she gets old enough, she would participate in Pokemon Contests. Sakura, wanting to be more like Ino, decided that she would one day become a great Pokemon Coordinator as well. So, she finally decided to step out of Ino's shadow, and go her own way. Now, the two of them see each other as rivals, and best friends.

**Friends**: Ino Yamanaka, Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi

**Rival(s)**: Ino Yamanaka

**Status**: Trainer/Coordinator

Naruto Uzumaki

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 12 years old

**Outfit**: A black long-sleeved shirt, with the sleeves rolled up, with an orange and blue sleeveless jacket on top. He's wearing matching orange and blue trousers as well as two black wristbands. Here's the link to his outfit, and again, I don't own that pic: http://pumpkin-girl (dot) deviantart (dot) com / art / MODERN-NARUTO-FINALLY-74228275

**Bio**: Naruto was ignored and isolated when he was a child. He had no-one, but his parents and some close friends. So now, he is determined to surpass his father, _Minato Namikaze_, and become the world's greatest Pokemon Master, so that everyone would respect him.

**Friends**: Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha, Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, Ino Yamanaka (Not as close as the others, though.)

**Rival(s)**: Sasuke Uchiha

**Status**: Trainer

Sasuke Uchiha

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 12 years old

**Outfit**: A black long sleeved shirt, with the Uchiha symbol sewn near the neck of the shrit, with a dark blue jacket on top, and matching black pants. He's also wearing spiky wristbands and collar. Link to his outfit, and I don't own this pic: http://pumpkin-girl (dot) deviantart (dot) com/ art /Modern-Sasuke-64528905

**Bio**: Sasuke wasn't acknowledged by his father, _Fugaku Uchiha_, much when he was young. His older brother, _Itachi Uchiha_, was, and still is, one of the Elite Four. So Fugaku kept pushing Itachi to train and become one of the best trainers in history, ignoring Sasuke most of the time. Sasuke wanted his father to acknowledge him, so he tried to get Itachi to catch him a Pokemon, so that he could become a trainer too, even at a very young age. However, Itachi kept telling him that he's busy, so he never had a chance to get his own Pokemon then. Now, at the age of twelve, he vows to get stronger and surpass his brother so that his father will, finally, acknowledge him.

**Friends**: Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno (That's all, since he doesn't interact much.)

**Rival(s)**: Naruto Uzumaki, Itachi Uchiha

**Status**: Trainer

Ino Yamanaka

**Gender**: Female

**Age**: 12 years old

**Outfit**: A purple tank-top that's open to the shoulders, with a matching purple mini-skirt, with a fishnet undershirt. The word "Hime" is printed on her purple shirt. She's also wearing fishnet gloves, and her hair is pulled back into a high ponytail with a blue ribbon. Here's the link to her outfit, and again, I don't own the pic. In the picture, you can either ignore the blue highlights in her hair, or keep them there, your choice: http://pumpkin-girl (dot) deviantart (dot) com/ art /Modern-Ino-59521281

**Bio**: When Ino was a kid, she was a really popular girl. She made friends with a pinkette named _Sakura Haruno_, who was made fun of a lot of the time. She gave her courage, and respected her when Sakura told her that she would become a Pokemon Coordinator as well, and surpass Ino herself, someday. Now, she views Sakura as a rival, but also her best friend.

**Friends**: Sakura Haruno, Naruto Uzumaki, Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, Sasuke Uchiha (She doesn't really consider him as a close friend, but still, an acquaintance.)

**Rival(s)**: Sakura Haruno

**Status**: Trainer/Coordinator

Shikamaru Nara

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 12 years old

**Outfit**: A green long sleeved shirt, with rolled up sleeves, and with a dark green vest on top. He's also wearing dark green wristbands, and matching green pants, plus a black tie.

**Bio**: Shikamaru didn't really have a sad past. He's considered a smart, but lazy kid. He, like Ino, befriended another person who was being picked on. In Shikamaru's case, it's _Choji Akimichi_. However, unlike Ino and Sakura, Shikamaru and Choji are just best friends; they didn't think of each other as rivals.

**Friends**: Choji Akimichi, Ino Yamanaka, Sakura Haruno, Naruto Uzumaki

**Rival(s)**: None

**Status**: Trainer

Choji Akimichi

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 12 years old

**Outfit**: A white long sleeved shirt with a maroon colored strip in the middle of the shirt. He's also wearing a green jacket, along with green pants. Here's the link to his outfit: http://pumpkin-girl (dot) deviantart (dot) com/ art /Modern-Chouji-60159203

**Bio**: Choji, like Sakura, was picked on by other kids when he was young. He was made fun of mostly because he didn't really know anything and the fact that he was fat and useless. One kid didn't make fun of him though, and that kid is Shikamaru Nara. Shikamaru befriended him, and, like Ino did for Sakura, boosted his confidence. The only difference that separates Shikamaru and Choji from Ino and Sakura, is that the two boys don't view each other as rivals.

**Friends**: Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno

**Rival(s)**: None

**Status**: Trainer

Neji Hyuuga

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 13 years old

**Outfit**: He's wearing the same outfit he wore during the first arc of "Naruto".

**Bio**: Neji was, and still is, considered as a genius. When, he was young, however, his father passed away, leaving him alone. (His mother died when Neji was only one year old.) So, his uncle, _Hiashi Hyuuga_ took him under his wing, and trained him, along with his cousing, _Hinata Hyuuga_. Now, the two cousins work together as gym leaders.

**Friends**: Hanabi Hyuuga(cousin), Hinata Hyuuga(cousin and fellow gym leader), Hiashi Hyuuga(uncle), Rock Lee, all the other gym leaders

**Rivals(s)**: Rock Lee

**Status**: Gym Leader

Hinata Hyuuga

**Gender**: Female

**Age**: 12 years old

**Outfit**: A purple long sleeved shirt with a white, long jacket on top. She's also wearing jeans and a necklace with the Hyuuga family symbol. Here's the link to her outfit, and put disclaimer here: http://pumpkin-girl (dot) deviantart (dot) com/ art /Modern-Hinata-60635230

**Bio**: Hinata, at first, was thought of weak and useless by her own father, _Hiashi Hyuuga._ So, she tried really hard to prove him wrong. Hiashi wasn't really impressed, but accepted what she could do, anyway. Later, she was trained with her cousin,_ Neji Hyuuga_, and now the two of them work together as gym leaders.

**Friends**: Hanabi Hyuuga(sister), Neji Hyuuga(cousin and fellow gym leader), Hiashi Hyuuga(father), Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame, Rock Lee, all the other gym leaders

**Rival(s)**: None

**Status**: Gym Leader

TenTen

**Gender**: Female

**Age**: 13 years old

**Outfit**: A grayish-plum colored Chinese shirt with a picture two dragons entwining on the front. She's also wearing jeans and beaded bracelets, and her hair is put in two pigtails.

**Bio**: TenTen grew up like any normal kid would. She's part Chinese, and is a determined and headstrong teen.

**Friends**: Neji Hyuuga, Rock Lee, Hinata Hyuuga, Might Guy

**Rivals(s)**: None

**Status**: Trainer

Kakashi Hatake

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 26 years old

**Outfit**: The same outfit he wore during the anime.

**Bio**: Kakashi is considered as one of the greatest gym leaders in history. It was rumored that when he was still a teenager, and was traveling with his friends, an accident occurred, and his best friend was badly injured, possible killed. His best friend, _Obito Uchiha_, gave Kakashi his starter pokemon, Shinx. Kakashi had taken great care of Shinx, and thought of it as his everlasting memory of Obito.

**Friends**: All the gym leaders, Iruka, Rock Lee

**Status**: Gym Leader

Might Guy

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 26 years old

**Outfit**: He's wearing his usual green spandex suit.

**Bio**: There wasn't really anything interesting in Guy's past. He grew up like any normal kid would.

**Friends**: All the gym leaders plus his apprentice, Rock Lee

**Rival(s)**: Kakashi Hatake

**Status**: Gym Leader

Rock Lee

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 13 years old

**Outfit**: Lee's also wearing his usual green spandex suit.

**Bio**: Lee was considered weak by Neji. Lee wanted to prove to Neji that he wasn't the only one in the world who could become strong. So, Lee has become the apprentice of _Might Guy_, in order to become stronger.

**Friends**: Neji Hyuuga, TenTen, Hinata Hyuuga, all the gym leaders

**Rival(s)**: Neji Hyuuga

**Status**: Trainer/Apprentice

Kiba Inuzuka

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 12 years old

**Friends**: Shino Aburame, Hinata Hyuuga

**Rival(s)**: None

**Status**: Trainer

Shino Aburame

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 12 years old

**Friends**: Kiba Inuzuka, Hinata Hyuuga

**Rival(s)**: None

**Status**: Trainer

Gaara no Sabaku

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 12 years old

**Outfit**: Gaara's wearing the clothes he wore during Naruto: Shippuuden, only without his gourd.

**Bio**: Gaara, like Naruto, was isolated and lonely. His own father tried to get rid of him, and his siblings couldn't do anything to stop him. The loneliness drove him crazy, until he learned to control himself. Later, as he matured, he wanted others to acknowledge him as well, so he became a gym leader.

**Friends**: Temari no Sabaku, Kankuro no Sabaku, all the other gym leaders

**Rival(s)**: None

**Status**: Gym Leader

Temari no Sabaku

**Gender**: Female

**Age**: 15 years old

**Outfit**: Ok, I'm just too lazy to type a description, so here's the link to her outfit, and my disclaimer applies here too: http://pumpkin-girl (dot) deviantart (dot) com/ art /Modern-Temari-61542611

**Bio**: Temari was a bit scared when she found out that her father tried to get rid of her little brother, _Gaara_. However, as time passed, she learned how to stay calm around Gaara, and respect him. Temari is considered a tomboy, and rash, but she can be gentle at times.

**Friends**: Gaara no Sabaku, Kankuro no Sabaku, all the other gym leaders

**Rival(s)**: None

**Status**: Gym Leader

Kankuro no Sabaku

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 13 years old

**Outfit**: Here's the link to Kankuro's outfit: http://pumpkin-girl (dot) deviantart (dot) com/ art /Modern-Kankurou-59374364

**Bio**: Like Temari, Kankuro was terrified when he found out that his father was trying to get rid of Gaara. However, now he and Temari knows how to treat Gaara, and respect him. He lives with both his siblings; he only switches gyms when he feels like it. He may even battle Gaara's or Temari's opponents as a warm up for them (the opponents.)

**Friends**: Gaara no Sabaku, Temari no Sabaku

**Rival(s)**: None

**Status**: Trainer

Kurenai Yuhi

**Gender**: Female

**Age**: 26 years old

**Outfit**: She's wearing the same outfit she wore in the anime.

**Friends**: All the gym leaders

**Rival(s)**: None

**Status**: Gym Leader

Asuma Sarutobi

**Gender**: Male

**Age**: 26 years old

**Outfit**: He's wearing the same outfit he wore in the anime.

**Friends**: All the gym leaders

**Rival(s)**: None

**Status**: Gym Leader

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**I know this isn't much of a first chapter, but it's just the beginning! The real story starts in the next chapter! ;) This is just an introduction. I hope you'll enjoy this fic, starting from the next chapter, if this chapter was too boring for you all! **


	2. Let's Get Going!

**Here's the second chapter to "The Pokemon Adventure of Team 7". I have ideas going for this fic, but the problem is the time I have to update. Sorry if I'm updating slow, but still, here's the next chapter! And by the way, I saw that the links didn't work in the first chapter, so I'm posting the links on my profile. **

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"speaking"

"_thoughts"_

"_**Inner Self"**_

**Pokedex speaking (Without quotes)**

**Let's Get Going!**

"_Our new champion, ladies and gentlemen, NARUTO UZUMAKI! Uzumaki-san has surpassed the champion, his own father, to claim the title for himself! This is a great turn-around in history, people! Now, let's see what Uzumaki-san has to say." The announcer handed the microphone over to Naruto, and just as he was about to speak…_

_Naruto…_

_Naruto…_

_NARUTO!!!_

Real Life

"Ahhh!! Huh, what? Oh, hi mom," said a really sleepy Naruto Uzumaki. Kushina had her hands on her waist, and was tapping her foot impatiently. Naruto sent her a confused look.

"Mom, why do you look so…" Before Naruto could finish, Kushina interrupted, "Naruto, don't tell me you've forgotten which day today is."

"Huh, day? What do you mean, mom?" Naruto still had a confused look on his face, and his mother sighed.

"Don't you remember? Today's the day you get your starter pokemon from Professor Iruka." After Kushina said that, Naruto's jaw dropped and his eyes became as wide as saucers. Before Kushina knew it, Naruto had rushed into the bathroom to prepare for the day.

After changing and breakfast

"See ya, mom. I'm gonna go now," said Naruto heading for the door, but then stopped. He turned around to face his mother and the TV. The television was showing his father, Minato Namikaze's last battle against an opponent.

Naruto pointed at the television and said, "I will surpass you someday, dad, you'll see." Then, he dropped his arm, and casually walked out the door.

With Sakura when Naruto was still asleep, Sakura POV

(AN: By the way, Sakura's bag is like May's the one where the strap goes around the waist.)*Zip * Ok, now everything's packed, right? And… my headband.

Sakura reached for her pink headband, and tied it on top of her head. Heh, it's the start of a new generation.

"_**Come on girl, let's go already! We'll beat Ino-pig for sure! Shannaro!!" **_ Yep, for sure I'll surpass Ino. Wait and see Ino, wait and see.

I walked out the door of my room and rushed down the stairs. I said goodbye to my mom, ran out the front door, and hopped onto my bicycle. I think I remember the way to Professor Iruka's lab… Um… yeah, I do. Ok, here I go!

Iruka's Lab Sakura POV

Ha! I was right after all. So… this is Professor Iruka's lab. I knocked on the door a couple of times, then I heard a voice telling me to come in. I opened the door, and saw Professor Iruka bent over one of the pokemon, giving it some food. When he heard the door open, he faced the entrance and smiled warmly.

"Oh, hi there. You must be one of the new trainers here to pick out a starter. You must be Sakura Haruno, since there's only one female trainer coming to pick up one of these pokemon?" said Iruka, and at the same time waving his hand, gesturing me to come in.

I stepped inside the lab and looked at the three pokemon eating: Torchic, Treecko, and Mudkip. Professor Iruka, who was crouched right beside me, stood up. He looked at the three starter pokemon, then at me.

"So Sakura, have you decided which one you would like to have? You're lucky though. You're the first one to get here." Uh-huh, I know, I woke up extra early for that. Hm… Mudkip seems happy-go-lucky, Treecko, I think seems to act cool, and Torchic is just cute! And from what I know, Torchic evolves into a Blaziken, and I bet its really powerful.

"Yeah, and I pick Torchic." I realized that Torchic, at the mention of its name, raised its head, looked up at me, and chirped happily, like it was saying, "Nice to meet you!" A kind of stupid question popped up in my mind right there and then.

I asked Professor Iruka, "Um, professor. Is the Torchic a he or a she?" The professor didn't laugh or show any signs that he thought that question was kinda lame.

He just replied, "Torchic is a male, Sakura. Here," saying so, he picked up Torchic, and turned him around so that his back was facing me. I noticed a small black speck on his… *ahem* rear. Then, I suddenly remembered. Male Torchics have a small black speck on their behinds, but female Torchics don't. How can I forget that?

"Oh, yeah. I forgot about the mark, professor. I should've remembered something like that." Professor Iruka put Torchic down, and patted my head. Then, he looked like he just remembered something.

"Oh, I almost forgot. Wait here for a bit, Sakura." Saying so, he trudged towards the back of the lab, and took something, but I couldn't see what it was. He then came back with a pink box in his hands. I was about to ask what it was, but he told me before I had a chance to ask.

"This, Sakura, is a Pokedex. It can tell you about the Pokemon you encounter on your journey. You use this like this." Professor Iruka then opened the cover of the Pokedex, and pointed it in Torchic's direction. Then, I heard the Pokedex saying something in a mechanical voice.

**Torchic, the Chick Pokemon. A fire burns inside, so it feels very warm to hug. It launches fireballs of 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit. **

I was impressed. Professor Iruka then said, "I'm sure this Pokedex will be a great help to you on your journey. From what I know, it can process information about any Pokemon you want to know about. So, I'm sure it'll work on every Pokemon you encounter. Oh, and I only have three Pokedexes, one for you, and one each for the other two new trainers. So, if someone asks where he or she can get it, just say it's all out." So there are only three Pokedexes in this region? Huh, interesting.

I took the small pink Pokedex from the professor. After that, he took out a Pokeball, and returned Torchic to it, and handed it to me. After that, he took out five more Pokeballs to give to me. Of course, a trainer can have six Pokemon at his or her side. I looked at Torchic's Pokeball. My first starter Pokemon, Torchic, I'm sure we'll get along really well!

I said goodbye to Professor Iruka, and went outside. I got onto my bike and started pedaling. When I was near the entrance of my hometown, Littleroot Town, I saw Ino coming towards me. She was with two other boys, one with his hair pulled up into a spiky ponytail, and the other one munching on potato chips. I immediately recognized them as Shikamaru Nara and Choji Akimichi. Later, Ino must've spotted me as well, since she came, running towards me.

"Hello, Ino. What brings you here?" I looked at her smiling face. A moment later, she held out her hand.

"I'm just here to congratulate my best friend on getting her starter Pokemon. It's about time you got one too, y'know." Was I supposed to take that as a compliment or insult? Well, I shook her hand anyway, and then I added, "Thanks Ino-pig. But remember, I might've gotten my Pokemon later than you, but I can still surpass you! Remember that!"

The two of us released the handshake, and Ino replied, "Ha! You think you can be better than me, Billboard Brow? Fat chance!" I got off my bike, and glared at her.

"Oh really? So what will you do if you finally see that I'm better than you, huh?" I challenged her. Ino glared back at me, as well.

"I won't do anything, because you'll never surpass me!" We glared at each other for a while more, but then, both of us ended up giggling.

"That aside, I haven't seen you for at least two years, Sakura!" Ino immediately gave me a friendly hug.

I returned her hug and replied, "Yeah, Ino. Me neither." Suddenly, I wanted to see what Pokemon she has. That would also be a nice chance to test out the Pokedex. So, I released the hug, and asked her if I could see her Pokemon.

Ino proudly smiled, and took out five Pokeballs. I think my eyeballs popped out of my head. She had five, **five** Pokemon!

Ino smirked, maybe because she saw the surprise on my face. Then, she released all her Pokemon. I looked at all five of them: Marill, Surskit, Jigglypuff, Sunflora, and Chikorita. She even has a starter Pokemon fron another region!

Getting my chance, I took out my Pokedex, and got the data about each of her Pokemon. I pointed my Pokedex at Marill first. Almost immediately, the Pokedex's voice rang in the air.

**Marill, the Aqua Mouse Pokemon. Using its tail as a float, it dives underwater. It likes eating plants that grow on river bottoms. **

Then, I switched over to Surskit.

**Surskit, the Pond Skater Pokemon. It appears as if skating on water. It draws prey with a sweet scent on the tip of its head. **

Huh, very interesting. Ok, now for Sunflora.

**Sunflora, the Sun Pokemon. It gets energy from warm sunlight and is known for its habit of moving in pursuit of it.**

Ok, let's move onto Jigglypuff.

**Jigglypuff, the Balloon Pokemon. When it wavers its big, round eyes, it begins singing a lullaby that makes everyone drowsy.**

Wow, it must be very handy. And finally, Chikorita.

**Chikorita, the Leaf Pokemon. It uses the leaf on its head to determine the temperature and humidity. It loves to sunbathe. **

Loves to sunbathe, huh? Well, that suits Ino's personality perfectly, except Ino can't detect the temperature with her ponytail!

I switched off the Pokedex, and looked at Ino. I saw that she was surprised by the Pokedex.

"What's that pink box you have, Sakura?" she asked. Ino's not the only one who can astonish other people.

I answered, "This is a Pokedex. Sorry if you want one, but it's all out." I saw Ino's face fall, but then she perked up again. Typical Ino.

Then, she grabbed my wrist, and towed me toward her companions. When we got to the two boys, Ino said, "You remember these two right, Sakura?" Of course, how could I forget the number one genius back at the academy and the big eater?

"Of course I do Ino. I'm a bit surprised though. I thought you used to think these two were "troublesome", as Shikamaru would say." I made air quotes when I said "troublesome".

Ino whispered, "I still think they're a bit troublesome, but they can be helpful at times." I giggled lightly when she said that.

"Well, it was nice meeting you again Ino, but I gotta go now." Ino grinned. I know that she knows the real rivalry is starting now.

"Sure. You're already heading out, right?" I nodded my head, and Ino's grinned vanished, determination replacing the grin.

"Heh, thought so. But just remember, you'll never beat me!" Now, I'm really firm on surpassing Ino.

I retorted, "Well, you're gonna end up wrong, because I **will** beat you, Ino-pig!" Before Ino could say something, I had already gotten onto my bike, and pedaled out of the town.

With Sasuke when Sakura was talking with Ino, Sasuke POV

This is the day. I'm finally going to get my first Pokemon. I'd better get to the professor's lab now. Before I left, mother hugged me and kissed me on the cheek, but I only got a grunt from father. Seeing that my father didn't really care where I went, I walked out the front door.

Then, when I was outside, I ran to Professor Iruka's lab, hoping that I would be the first one there.

Iruka's lab, Sasuke's POV

*Pant, pant, pant* Ugh, that was tiring. I didn't bother knocking, I'm sure the professor is expecting me anyway. I opened the door, and saw Professor Iruka petting two, **two** Pokemon. So, I was beaten here by someone else. Already, I'm off on a bumpy start. But, I guess choosing between two is better than being stuck with the last one, which is usually the weakest one.

"You must be Fugaku's son, Sasuke Uchiha. Come on in," invited Professor Iruka. I strode in and examined Treecko and Mudkip. In terms of type advantages, Treecko definitely had the upper hand. And, it seems that Mudkip is a bit too, um, hyper. Treecko is calmer, and I think it'll listen to me better. It's decided then.

"So Sasuke, which one of them do you want to take?" asked the professor.

"Yes. I'll take Treecko." I glanced at Treecko, and its face showed happiness. It must know that I picked it.

"Very well Sasuke. And if you're wondering, Treecko is a he." Professor Iruka then smiled. Where did that statement come from anyway?

I noticed that the professor had a dark blue box in his hands. He must've seen me looking at it, since he started to tell me what it was.

"Oh yes. Sasuke, this is a Pokedex. It picks up information about the Pokemon you want to know about. Like so," And saying so, he switched on the Pokedex, and pointed it towards Treecko. Almost immediately, a mechanical voice shot out

**Treecko, the Wood Gecko Pokemon. The soles of its feet are covered by countless tiny spikes, enabling it to walk on walls and ceilings.**

Heh, this Pokedex can come in handy. Professor Iruka then handed me the Pokedex, and he returned Treecko to his Pokeball. Then, he handed me Treecko's Pokeball, along with five other Pokeballs.

I just said a simple thank you to the professor, and walked outside. Surely I'll catch up to Itachi one day. Maybe then father will acknowledge me.

Naruto when he reached Iruka's lab, Naruto POV

"Yikes *pant* this run *pant* is really *pant* frustrating!" Well, at least I got to Professor Iruka's lab. I just barged in, not bothering to knock. Yes, I know, it's rude, but still, I can't hold in the excitement!

But, when I got in, I just saw one Pokemon, a Mudkip. Ah man, and I was looking forward to getting a fire type. I saw Professor Iruka standing beside Mudkip with some Pokeballs and an orange and blue box in his hands.

"Naruto, you're late, as usual. Too bad, Mudkip's the only one left." Well, duh. Mudkip seems to have determination in its eyes, though. I wonder if he feels bad, since the other two trainers didn't pick him. (AN: Yes, Mudkip's a male.)

"It's ok. I guess Mudkip'll have to do." I picked up Mudkip, and stared into his eyes. When he smiled, I thought we were going to be really good friends. But then, he shot a water gun in my face; it was shot lightly though.

I shook my head to clear the water, and glared at Mudkip. It was still smiling. Ugh, great. Mudkip was already making fun of me. Please Mudkip, **please** listen to my commands when we're in battle, ok? I hoped that Mudkip would get what I was thinking, but I don't know if it did.

Then, Professor Iruka chuckled lightly and said, "Sorry Naruto, but Mudkip's a little giddy. You don't think he's too much for you, do you?" Was that I little challenge I heard?

"Heh, nothing's too much for me, professor, dattebayo!" For sure I'll be able to train Mudkip. I turned to face Mudkip again. I smiled at him, and he smiled back, but then soaked me with water gun again. I shook my head again, this time, setting Mudkip down.

Professor Iruka then gave me the box he had and said, "Here Naruto. This is a Pokedex, and it can record any data about the Pokemon you want to know about. Like this," Then, he switched on the Pokedex, and pointed it at Mudkip. I suddenly heard a voice coming from the Pokedex.

**Mudkip, the Mud Fish Pokemon. To alert it, the fin on its head senses the flow of water. It has the strength to heft boulders.**

"Cool! So it can tell me about any Pokemon, professor?" I was really excited now. This Pokedex is really cool!

"Yes, it'll pick up information on any Pokemon you want to know about. Now, if other people ask you where you got the Pokedex, just tell them it's all out, ok? There are only three Pokedexes in this region right now, anyway." Cool, so I got the last one! Yeah, dattebayo! He then returned Mudkip to his Pokeball, and handed it to me, along with five more Pokeballs

"Thanks a million, professor. By the way, I'll get Mudkip to listen to my commands too!" The professor waved at me, and I ran out the door. I could tell this is going to be a really great day already!

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**Here's the first official chapter! How'd you guys like it? By the way, I put Naruto U. and Sakura H. in the character tabs 'cuz Naruto's the main boy character, and Sakura's the main girl character. I'm still thinking of whether to put in some hints of NaruSaku, or just build the story up to NaruSaku. Well, why don't you tell me in your reviews, and then I'll see! Watch out for the next chapter!**


	3. The Adventures Start

**I'm trying to work mainly on this fic right now, since I have a lot of ideas in my head on this. So… here's the next chappie!**

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"speaking"

"_thoughts"_

"_**Inner Self"**_

**Pokedex Speaking (Without quotes)**

"Pokemon Speaking" (Underlined with quotes)

**The Adventures Start**

With Naruto

"Argh, where am I anyway?!" shouted a very frustrated Naruto, with a hyper Mudkip trailing behind him. Naruto has just gotten his first Pokemon, Mudkip, and was now stuck in a forest. (AN: It's Petalburg Forest, by the way.)

Naruto looked like he'll never find a way out, now. To add to that depression, a wild Pokemon attacked him and Mudkip. The flying type Pokemon swooped down and attacked, then went back up in the air again. Then, it swooped down and attacked again!

"Come on, Mudkip, use Water Gun!" Mudkip used Water Gun, but missed, and Naruto got pecked again.

"Argh, that's it. What Pokemon is this anyway?" Saying so, Naruto pulled out his orange and black Pokedex, and switched it on. He directed it at the attacking Pokemon, and the mechanical voice immediately spoke.

**Starly, the Starling Pokemon. They flock in great numbers. Though small, they flap their wings with great power.**

"A Starly, huh? Ha, then I'll catch it! Mudkip, when it swoops down again, use Tackle to knock it off balance!" Mudkip for once, got serious, and obeyed Naruto. Mudkip squatted down low, then when Starly attacked again, Mudkip tackled it, right on time.

"_Hey, Mudkip's listening to me! He's listening to me!"_ Naruto did a little chant inside his head, but still concentrated on the battle he's having.

When Mudkip tackled Starly, it definitely got off balance, and was thrown onto the ground. Now, it's vulnerable to attacks.

"Mudkip, now hit it with Water Gun!" Mudkip let out a cry, "Mudkip!" then sprayed Starly with Water Gun. Fortunately for Starly, it still got enough strength to fly off into the sky again before Mudkip's Water Gun hit it.

"NO! Mudkip, don't let it get away! Try to hit it with Water Gun again!" Naruto's determination also fueled Mudkip's own determination.

"Mudkip, Mudkip!" "Alright! I won't miss this time!" Mudkip then reared up for a really powerful Water Gun attack.

Fortunately for Naruto, the Water Gun hit Starly's tail, and it fell. While it fell, Naruto took out an empty Pokeball, and aimed it at Starly.

"Alright, Pokeball, GO!" Then, the blond threw the Pokeball. When the Pokeball hit Starly, it was sucked in immediately. When the Pokeball landed smack on the ground, it still rolled around a bit more.

Naruto looked at the Pokeball, thinking, _"Come on, don't break out, don't break out."_ After a while, the Pokeball stopped shaking, and settled down.

Naruto could barely hold in his excitement. He picked up the Pokeball and hugged Mudkip.

"Alright, alright, alright! I caught my first Pokemon! Dattebayo!" He then realized that he was choking Mudkip. So, he released the poor Pokemon, and congratulated him.

"Thanks a million, Mudkip. If it wasn't for you, I would never have gotten Starly! Thanks for listening to me!" Naruto hugged Mudkip tight again.

"Mudkip, Mud… kip! Mudkip! Mudkip! Mudkip!" "Argh, you're choking me again, Naruto- baka! Yeah, I helped, but you don't have to choke me!"

Naruto finally released Mudkip again, and apologized, "I'm sorry, Mudkip. Guess I got a little too carried away." The blond boy then set Mudkip down on the ground.

"Mudkip!" "Thanks for releasing me."

Naruto grinned at Mudkip. "Heh, come on Mudkip, we're going to find our way outta this mess, dattebayo!" Then, he sprinted towards a random direction.

"Mudkip, Mudkip, Kip! Mudkip…." "No, wait! Stop! Don't go somewhere recklessly! *sigh* Guess I'll just have to follow…" So he did, follow Naruto, I mean. (AN: Remember, Mudkip's radar is really handy in situations like this.)

After about 30 minutes of walking…

"*Pant, pant* Ahh!! I'll never find a way out!" cried a very, very frustrated Naruto.

"Mudkip, kip!" "Listen to me!" It was no use, though. Naruto has already gone off to another direction. Mudkip didn't have a choice, but to trail after him.

A while later, Naruto heard a trainer battling. He heard faint commands of ember and scratch. "Mudkip, can you hear that?" Naruto asked Mudkip.

"Mudkip, kip!" "Of course I can!"

"Hey, so can you lead me to that trainer?" Mudkip just nodded his head, and ran in front of Naruto.

With Mudkip's guidance, Naruto got to the trainer in just a short moment. He hid behind a couple of bushes, and watched the battle going on. He could see a girl, just about his age with pink hair battling a Skitty with her Torchic.

With Sakura before Naruto got to her

"_Petalburg Forest. This place should be good enough to try out some appeals __**and**__ work on my battling skills. I'd better practice with Torchic now ,"_ thought a pinkette, by the name of Sakura Haruno. She pulled out a Pokeball from her bag, and threw it into the air.

"Alright, Torchic, take the stage!" announced Sakura. Torchic came out of his Pokeball beautifully, with fire balls surrounding him, and the fireballs then disappeared. (AN: I liked what May says when she takes out her Pokemon, so I used her line for Sakura too.)

Torchic then landed gracefully on the ground. After landing, it turned to Sakura with a joyful face, asking her if his entrance was good enough. Sakura's face showed satisfaction, and she nodded her head.

"Alright Torchic, now let's—"Sakura was interrupted by a wild Pokemon suddenly attacking from above. She immediately pulled out her Pokedex, and analyzed the Pokemon.

**Seedot, the Acorn Pokemon. When it dangles from a tree branch, it looks just like an acorn. It enjoys scaring other Pokemon. **

"Torchic, go! Use Ember!" Torchic jumped up in the air, and blast Seedot with an Ember attack. It seems as if Seedot got hit, but the Ember attack didn't hit the Seedot right on mark. The Seedot then jumped up to tackle Torchic. Torchic, unfortunately, got hit.

"Torchic! Are you okay?" Sakura rushed to her Torchic's side to examine him. Torchic let out a small whimper, and stood back up. Torchic immediately charged at the Seedot. He scratched Seedot first, then tackled it. Seedot was blown back by the impact, but got back up on its feet. Before it could attack, Torchic had thrown another Ember attack at it, and this time, it was a bull's-eye.

Sakura cheered and praised Torchic, but before she could do anything else, more wild Pokemon came and attacked. Sakura wanted to learn more about the wild Pokemon, so she switched on her Pokedex, and gave commands to Torchic to fend them off as well. This time, Torchic was fighting a group of wild Pokemon consisting of Wurmples, Zizagoons, and Shroomishes. The Pokedex went to work immediately analyzing the wild Pokemon.

**Wurmple, the Worm Pokemon. If it is attacked by a Starly, it will defend itself with its spiked rear. **

**Zigzagoon, the Tiny Racoon Pokemon. It walks in a zigzag fashion. It is good at finding items in the grass and even in the ground. **

**Shroomish, the Pokemon. It sprouts poison spores from the top of its head. These spores cause pain all over if inhaled. **

"_Crap! How's Torchic going to fend off this group?! He's only a Torchic for God's sake! Ugh, I'll just have to try,"_ thought Sakura, trying to stay calm. After all, Torchic is the only Pokemon she has on hand right now.

"Ok, Torchic. Use Ember attack on the group!" Torchic collected a ball of fire in his beak, and shot it at the wild Pokemon.

Sakura was thinking while Torchic was fighting. _"Torchic certainly has the advantage over the Shroomish and Wurmples. Zigzagoons are normal types, but I think fire attacks can hurt them as well." _

"Torchic, see if you can make a circle of fire around them!" Sakura then thought, _"I know Torchic's not a fighting type yet, but he could still try."_

Torchic was indeed trying to run as fast as he can to complete the circle of fire. The Pokemon were panicking when the wall of fire appeared around them, so they were all petrified. Torchic, when he completed the circle, jumped in the air, and unleashed a fiery Ember attack at the group of Pokemon. The circle of fire kept the Pokemon from escaping, so all of them were caught dead in the center.

"Torchic, you did it!" Sakura hugged Torchic and was jumping up and down. Sakura couldn't let go of Torchic, since he's very warm to hug. After a while, Sakura released Torchic and set him down.

"Come on Torchic, let's go. I'm gonna keep you out like this. I don't think being cooped up in a Pokeball is very comfortable, is it?" Sakura crouched down, and Torchic responded by hopping onto her head. Sakura then got back up, and ran to a random direction.

After about 20 minutes of walking around

"Hahhhh… we're getting nowhere like this, Torchic. I should've brought a map with me." Sakura, like Naruto, was lost, very lost. Sakura was doing the walking while Torchic kept an eye out for any wild Pokemon attacking them. Only a couple of Pokemon attacks had been launched by wild Pokemon, though.

"Man, and I was expecting to get a new Pokemon," whined Sakura. All of a sudden, the bushed near Sakura rustled. Torchic crouched down, and jumped off Sakura's head to defend his trainer. The rustling continued, and out came a pink Pokemon. Sakura immediately had the urge to catch it.

"_Ohh… It's soooo cute!! This is a Skitty if I'm not mistaken. Let's see what the Pokedex says about it,_" thought Sakura, as she took out her Pokedex.

**Skitty, the Kitten Pokemon. It can't stop itself from chasing moving things, and it runs in a circle, chasing its own tail. **

"Torchic, I want to capture this Skitty, so help me out on this, ok?" whispered Sakura to Torchic. The chick Pokemon nodded his head a little in agreement.

"Torchic, use Focus Energy!" Torchic really focused, to increase his critical-hit ratio. It then let out a cry, and charged toward the Skitty.

"Now, scratch it!" Torchic used its claws to scratch the Skitty, but it dodged. Then, Torchic, without Sakura's instructions, threw an Ember attack at Skitty. Skitty barely got out of the way, but the ember still hit its part of its body.

Skitty fought back now. It tackled Torchic, making him fly back. Sakura, however, kept cheering him on. Torchic jumped back up, but before he could attack, Skitty used Doubleslap. Torchic was again, thrown back.

"Torchic! You can do it, come on! I have faith in you!" screamed Sakura, as Torchic struggled to get up. Skitty was running towards Torchic again, but the chick Pokemon jumped in the air just in time. He was getting ready to unleash another Ember attack at the Skitty.

Skitty on the other hand, wasn't expecting Torchic to jump in the air, so couldn't dodge the upcoming Ember attack, and was now badly burned. Sakura seized that opportunity to take out an empty Pokeball and capture Skitty.

The pinkette did so. She pulled back, and threw the Pokeball at Skitty, and watched as it got sucked in. The Pokeball moved rapidly for a while, then slowed down a bit. Sakura watched the movement with anticipation, and finally, the Pokeball stopped moving.

"Yes! I caught a Skitty! I caught a Skitty! Thank you so much Torchic for fighting for me!" Sakura picked up the Pokeball with Skitty inside, and put it in her bag. Torchic perked up, and let out a small cry. Sakura turned around and saw a young blond boy watching her from the sidelines.

"_What the… I never knew I was being watched. Who is he, anyway?" _Then, her Inner interrupted, _**"Hopefully he's not going to cause any trouble."**_

"_Yes, hopefully not."_ Sakura walked over to the boy, and asked him his name. Torchic didn't really trust the blond, and now he was crouching as if he was getting ready to attack.

"I'm Naruto. Naruto Uzumaki," said the overexcited boy. "Sorry for watching you, but I got lost. But still, you match was amazing! Your Torchic must be really well trained! Dattebayo!" Sakura smiled when Naruto praised her Torchic.

"That's Torchic all right. I don't usually have to give him commands. He has the brains to fight himself, but I still cheer him on. By the way, I'm Sakura. Sakura Haruno." Sakura looked at Naruto's Mudkip, which was also overexcited, just like its trainer.

Naruto watched as Sakura crouched down to pet his Mudkip. _"Sakura-chan looks so kawaii. I've never seen anyone with pink hair before,"_ thought Naruto, staring at Sakura.

"Hey, did you get this Mudkip from Professor Iruka?" Naruto shook his head to interrupt his thoughts.

"Yeah. So wait. Sakura-chan, you got your Torchic from Professor Iruka too?" Sakura stood back up and answered, "Yep. I woke up extra early to get a cute starter Pokemon."

Naruto grinned his childish grin. Then he suggested, "Sakura-chan. Why don't we travel together? We can help each other out." Sakura's face showed surprise at first, but then she lightly smiled.

"Sure Naruto. I'm ok with that. By the way, are you interested in contests or battles?" Naruto's grin became wider when Sakura asked.

"I'm gonna be the champion someday, so you know now what I like. Dattebayo!" Sakura then looked closely at Naruto, examining him.

"Hm, you look a lot like the champion himself. Can you be his son?" Naruto's smile faltered when he heard that.

"It's always like that, wherever I go. Always 'Are you related to the champion?' or 'You look a lot like the champion.' I want to be known as Naruto Uzumaki. Not 'The Champion's son'." Sakura was taken aback. She started to apologize.

"Oh, I'm sorry Naruto. I didn't know," Naruto smiled again.

"It's ok, Sakura-chan. I know you didn't really mean to. Now do you mind if we get out of this forest?" asked Naruto.

"I'm dying to get out of here right now," answered Sakura. She turned to Mudkip and asked if he could lead them out of the forest. Naruto had a confused look on his face. Sakura saw the confusion, so she had to shed some light on this situation.

"Naruto, don't you know your Mudkip's fin is like a radar? Plus, I'm pretty sure that his Pokemon instincts will help him get us out of here." Sakura then turned to Torchic and said, "Torchic, you can go up front with Mudkip. I wasn't really sure you knew the navigations, but now that Mudkip's here, maybe he can help you out."

"Torchic! Tor!" "Ok Sakura! Though you're slightly right about my sense of direction."

"Alright Mudkip, Torchic! Lead the way!" hollered Naruto while running behind the two Pokemon, along with Sakura.

After getting out of the forest

"Yes! Freedom!" announced Naruto, running out of the forest with Sakura close behind. Naruto was kissing the ground when they got out.

Torchic whispered to Mudkip, "Tor, Torchic." "He's being way melodramatic."

"Mudkip, kip." "Ya think? I have to listen to him all the time too."

"So, if we just got out of Petalburg Forest, then we're going to enter Rustboro City," said Sakura hauling Naruto up from the ground.

"Hey, where're Torchic and Mudkip?" Sakura searched for the two Pokemon, only to find them picking some berries for their trainers. After a while, they both came back to show off the berries.

"Pecha berries and Cheri berries. Thanks Torchic. Naruto, accept the berries from Mudkip, would you?" Naruto crouched down to take the berries Mudkip had picked.

The blond boy got back up on his feet and prepared to run to Rustboro City. He hadn't gotten very far, when he crashed into someone.

"Ow… hey, who the heck are you?" Naruto looked up at a young boy, about his age, with messy brown hair.

"First, watch where you're going, runt. Second, you don't make a really good first impression. And third, my name's Kiba Inuzuka." However, the brunette helped Naruto up. Sakura was running up to Naruto with Torchic and Mudkip trailing behind her.

"Oh, hi. Sorry about Naruto. He's sometimes clumsy," apologized Sakura, for Naruto. Kiba grinned and then looked at Naruto.

"Hey kid, what do you say to a Pokemon battle, right now?" asked Kiba. Naruto immediately perked up when he heard the word 'battle'. He grinned his foxy grin and accepted the challenge.

"Hey, what's your name?" Kiba asked Sakura.

"Sakura. Sakura Haruno. And this is Naruto Uzumaki," answered Sakura.

"Nice name, it suits your hair. By the way, Sakura, you can be our referee. How many Pokemon do you have, kid?" Kiba asked Naruto. The blond boy's face showed a small bit of anger.

"I have two right now, and stop calling me kid!" yelled Naruto. Kiba put up his hands, palms facing out, in a defensive position.

"Alright, Naruto. Take it easy," soothed Kiba.

Before anything more could happen, Sakura shouted, "Are you two gonna battle or not?!" The two boys jumped, and paced back.

"S-Sure Sakura-chan. Alright, Kiba, two Pokemon each then," suggested Naruto.

Kiba grinned again, but then he said, "What do you say we make this a double battle? Two of our Pokemon battling at the same time."

"Heh heh, sure! Prepare for a heated battle, Kiba, dattebayo!" Naruto called Mudkip over, and called out his newly captured Starly. Kiba took out two Pokeballs, and out came a Growlithe and Poochyena.

"Wow, you have two cool Pokemon!" complimented Sakura, taking out her Pokedex to examine them. Naruto did the same.

**Growlithe, the Puppy Pokemon. It is a Pokemon with a loyal nature. It will remain motionless until it is given an order by its Trainer.**

**Poochyena, the Bite Pokemon. A Pokemon with a persistent nature, it will chase its chosen prey until the prey becomes exhausted. **

"Nice dogs, but I won't lose! Mudkip, Starly, attack!" commanded Naruto.

"Mudkip!"

"Starly!"

Then, at the same time, they both attacked once. Mudkip fired a Water Gun at Growlithe, and Starly flew high into the sky to use a peck attack against Poochyena.

"Growlithe, dodge the Water Gun and use Take Down! Poochyena, jump and use Tackle before Starly can hit you!" shouted Kiba. His Pokemon obeyed him, and both of them hit Starly and Mudkip , causing the Starling Pokemon to fall to the ground, and the Mud Fish Pokemon to roll backwards.

"Alright Growlithe, Poochyena, switch opponents! Growlithe, use Ember, Poochyena, use Bite!" The two Pokemon criss-crossed each other's path, and hit both of Naruto's Pokemon, sending them flying backwards again.

"Argh! Mudkip, Starly, get back up quickly! Mudkip, use Mud Slap against Growlithe! Starly go and use Wing Attack! Make sure you hit them, both of you!" urged Naruto.

Mudkip and Starly obeyed Naruto's commands, making sure that this time, they hit the two dogs, and they did.

"Alright you two! Mudkip, Starly, attack with Water Gun and Gust at the same time!"

Mudkip and Starly attacked together, their attacks getting mixed up. So, it looked like a combination of wind and water.

The tornado of attacks hit both Growlithe and Poochyena, causing them to fly back, and pass out.

"Since Growlithe and Poochyena are unable to battle, Naruto wins," announced Sakura.

"Alright! Nice job you two!" Naruto hugged Mudkip and swung him around, with Starly flying in circles above him. Kiba returned Growlithe and Poochyena to their Pokeballs, admitting defeat.

"I gotta admit you got some talent, kid." Naruto grinned at Kiba.

"Kiba, do you wanna travel with us?" asked Naruto, still hugging Mudkip.

Kiba shook his head and said, "Nah, I'd rather go alone. I wouldn't want us to get into a fight every time, y'know. Speaking of which, I'd better go now. Bye guys!" The brunette then waved to Naruto and Sakura, and ran off.

"Bye Kiba, nice meeting you!" Naruto shouted after him. Sakura gasped slightly, turning Naruto's attention towards her.

"I just remembered that there's contest hall on Rustboro! I need to train with Skitty and Torchic for that!" Sakura complained a bit, making Naruto sweatdrop a bit.

"Sakura-chan, you can train with me if you want. A two vs. two battle," Naruto suggested. Sakura turned to him, and smiled slightly.

"Thanks Naruto. That would help me in the battle section, but I also need to work on my appeals. Your Pokemon must be worn out by Kiba's Pokemon. I'll heal them as much as I can for now," offered Sakura, as she took out some medical equipment from her bag. Mudkip jumped out of Naruto's arms and went running towards her, and Starly flew towards Sakura.

When Sakura had helped the two Pokemon as much as she could, she jumped up, took out Skitty, and called Torchic.

"All right Naruto, should we do a double battle, like we did with Kiba?" questioned the pinkette. The blond boy just grinned at her and nodded his head.

"Alright then, let's start!" Sakura and Naruto started to give commands to their Pokemon almost at the same time.

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I'll describe the Naruto vs. Sakura fight in the next chappie! Please review! If I don't get at least 5 reviews, then no new chapter! So, review after reading!


	4. A New Comrade and New Enemies

**Thanks for the reviews to everyone who reviewed! **

**Maith**: Heh, thanks!

**CleverPhoenix**: Yeah, I know. In other fics, Naruto starts out with a Vulpix, which does make sense though. I love Vulpix too! ^_^

**jay rosario ()**: Well, for now, the character tabs are just saying that Naruto is the main boy character and Sakura's the main girl character. I'm not sure if I'm gonna make it a NaruSaku or no pairings… I'm still deciding…

**POKENARU!!!!!!!!~~~~~~~~~~ ()**: Thanks for reviewing, and glad you liked it! I'm concentrating on writing this fic more than my other ones.

**pleaz READ ()**: Thanks! I'm still thinking on the romance part though. I'm gonna ask the reviewers to vote on whether I should put in pairings or not.

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**A New Comarade and New Enemies**

"Alright Mudkip, Starly use Water Gun and Wing Attack!" commanded Naruto. Mudkip unleashed a stream of water while Starly flew into the sky, and started to perform a Wing Attack.

"Torchic, dodge the water gun! Skitty, use tackle when Starly's near enough!" shouted Sakura. Torchic jumped in the air to avoid the water gun while Skitty waited for the perfect chance to tackle Starly.

Without needing any more commands from Sakura, Torchic dove down towards Mudkip using a peck attack, hitting it right on the back. Torchic then made two somersaults in the air before landing. Skitty on the other hand had tackled Starly, making it go off balance. Then, she ran towards it and used double slap.

Mudkip and Starly were getting blows from Torchic and Skitty, and Naruto was freaking out.

"_Sakura-chan's really tough…She doesn't seem to give an opening,"_ thought the blond. Mudkip and Starly were trying to dodge Torchic and Skitty's attacks, but they just keep on coming.

"Mudkip, use water gun again, and Starly, use gust!" Mudkip and Starly used the combination that they used to beat Kiba against Torchic and Skitty. Sakura wasn't surprised though.

"Skitty, use copycat on Starly, Torchic, fire a strong ember attack and work with Skitty!" Torchic used the most powerful ember attack he could, and Skitty copied Starly's gust attack.

Now, Torchic and Skitty had created a combination of their ember and gust attacks. The fire was powered up by the wind, and the two combined attacks collided. Steam was rising from the place where the attacks crashed.

Later, the four Pokemon flew back from the impact and the combined attacks cancelled each other out. All four of them rebounded in the air.

"Skitty, use Attract!" Skitty sent yellow hearts towards Mudkip and Starly and hit them both. Mudkip and Starly immediately fell in love with Skitty, making them unable to continue battling.

"That's a nice trick, Sakura-chan!" praised Naruto. Sakura smiled and returned Skitty to her Pokeball, canceling the attract attack.

"Thanks Naruto. Well, I also gotta work on my appeals though. You can tell me if I need any more work," said Sakura. Naruto nodded, sat down and watched from the sidelines as Sakura threw Skitty's Pokeball to call her out again.

"Alright Skitty, take the stage!" Skitty came out of her Pokeball while hearts from her attract attack surrounded her. She gracefully did a somersault in the air while holding her large tail, and landed lightly on her feet/paws.

"Nice entrance for Skitty, Sakura-chan," commented Naruto. Sakura continued to give Skitty commands for the appeals.

"Alright Skitty, use sing!" Skitty released a melodious song, enchanting the "audience". Naruto was clapping like an excited kid while watching Sakura perform.

"Now Skitty go and…" Sakura was interrupted in mid-sentence by a string shot attack thrown at her Skitty, then she was pulled to the direction of the attacker.

"_Can't I practice my appeals without anything interrupting me?!"_ Sakura shouted in her head.

Naruto jumped up and demanded, "Who the heck are you?!" Two or should I say three figures stood hidden in the shadows of Petalburg Forest's exit.

A second later, another string shot attack was aimed at Starly, and he was also pulled towards the attackers.

"Hey! What the… my Starly! Give him back!" shouted Naruto. Sakura was also pissed since her Skitty was kidnapped.

"Show yourselves you cowards!" shouted Sakura. Torchic then released an enormous ember attack at them. The three of them disappeared, then reappeared right in front of Sakura and Naruto, on a Doduo.

"Heh, you think Lord Orochimaru would like these two? That Torchic and Mudkip seems powerful to me too," commented one of them who was really creepy since he had four arms.

"No way in hell are you getting my Torchic or Naruto's Mudkip!" yelled Sakura. Naruto backed her up.

"Come on and fight us, if you're not scared that is!" Naruto taunted. The three villains twitched and got off Doduo. Naruto and Sakura saw that an Ariados had Skitty and Starly wrapped up in a cocoon.

"You kids are asking for it. You'll soon know the power of Kidomaru, Sakon, and Ukon!" said the four armed man as he started to give his Pokemon commands.

"Ariados, use poison sting!" The giant spider aimed the attack towards Mudkip, but the Mud Fish Pokemon dodged it.

Naruto took out his Pokedex to get some data on Ariados.

**Ariados, the Long Leg Pokemon. Ariados's feet are tipped with tiny hooked claws that enable it to scuttle on ceilings and vertical walls. This Pokémon constricts the foe with thin and strong silk webbing. **

"_We've gotta get Starly and Skitty outta the webbing. I wonder if Sakura's Torchic can burn the webbing away,"_ thought Naruto as he also dodged Araidos's webbing. The spider was throwing its silk webbing to trap the two of them and their Pokemon.

Sakura on the other hand was battling Sakon and Ukon's Doduo. She also took out her pink Pokedex to examine Doduo.

**Doduo, the Twin Bird Pokemon. Doduo's two heads never sleep at the same time. Its two heads take turns sleeping, so one head can always keep watch for enemies while the other one sleeps.**

"_Very interesting,"_ thought Sakura as she and Torchic were dodging Doduo's pecking attacks.

Naruto and Sakura decided to attack them. "Mudkip use Water Gun!" shouted Naruto, and Mudkip fired a strong Water Gun at Ariados.

"Torchic, us Ember!" commanded Sakura, and Torchic unleashed a very powerful Ember attack at Doduo.

"Ariados, use Scary Face attack!" commanded Kidomaru. Ariados used Scary Face attack, and Mudkip backed down, stopping the Water Gun attack.

"Doduo, Fury Attack!" shouted the twins. Doduo quickly dodged the Ember attack, and hit Torchic with lots of pecks.

Torchic flew back from the impact while Mudkip was cowering.

"_Damn, Mudkip's really affected by the Scary Face,"_ thought Naruto. He was now telling Mudkip to snap out of it and attack Ariados.

"Torchic! You alright?" a concerned Sakura asked her Torchic. The Chick Pokemon was now covered with bruises from the Fury Attack.

"_Damn, that Doduo's fast. We need to counter-attack, and fast,"_ thought a slightly panicking Sakura and she crouched down next to her Torchic.

"Ariados, now attack with Night Shade!" Ariados shot Mudkip with black beams, and sent it flying.

"Mudkip!" Naruto shouted, concerned. Kidomaru, Sakon and Ukon laughed like maniacs. While they were laughing, Sakura and Naruto took that chance to switch opponents and attack.

"Torchic, Tor-chic!" "I'll take on the spider. I have the type advantage over him, anyway."

"Kip, Kip, Mudkip!" "Sure, I'll take care of the bird brain."

Torchic sent a strong Ember attack at Ariados while it was distracted and Mudkip fired a Water Gun attack at Doduo. This time they both hit, and sent the two Pokemon flying into two trees.

Before they had time to recover, Naruto and Sakura were already giving out their next commands.

"Torchic, use peck attack on Ariados!" Torchic jumped into the air, and dove down, aiming for the huge spider.

Doduo was already on its feet though, and was preparing to attack Mudkip.

Naruto shouted, "Mudkip, use bide!" Mudkip's body glowed white, and endured Doduo's pecking attacks. A moment later, it released a beam of light from its body, knocking Doduo off its feet.

Things were looking up for Naruto and Sakura, but a while later, the three villains got the upper hand.

Torchic was now poisoned by Ariados's Poison Sting, and Doduo's pecking attacks were too fast for Mudkip.

"You lose. Now you know the power of Team Sound." said Kidomaru. Ariados and Doduo were about to give them the final blows when two other Pokemon interrupted.

"Treecko, Quick Attack! Sneasel, Fury Swipes!" A streak of white light attacked Doduo while another Pokemon scratched Ariados many times.

"_Huh, who's that?" _Sakura asked herself. She could see another person standing in the sun, but doesn't really know who.

Ariados and Doduo paced back to their trainers, hurt from the attacks. The stranger kept giving commands.

"Treecko, use Absorb. Sneasel, use Icy Wind." Treecko and Sneasel attacked Ariados and Doduo again, damaging them more. Kidomaru, Sakon, and Ukon finally grew tired of the new trainer's attacks, and returned their Pokemon to their Pokeballs.

"We'll be back, and next time, we'll get your Pokemon," Sakon and Ukon said simultaneously. Then, the three criminals jumped out of sight into the forest.

The stranger returned his Treecko and Sneasel back to their Pokeballs, and was about to walk away when Naruto stopped him. Sakura, Torchic and Mudkip were trying to get the webbing off Skitty and Starly.

"Wait, who are you, and why did you help us?" asked the blond boy. The stranger turned around to face Naruto and Sakura, uttered a "hn" and walked away. (AN: Sound familiar?)

This time, Naruto ran up to him and grabbed the back of his collar. "I asked you your name and why you helped us! You could at least answer my questions!"

The boy turned around and just muttered, "Dobe."

A vein popped in Naruto's head and he yelled, "What was that Teme?! You still have to answer my question!"

Now the boy was twitching with annoyance. "Fine. The name's Sasuke Uchiha, and I just saw people in need of help so I helped. There, happy?" (AN: Wow, he actually spoke!)

"_Wow, he's cute,"_ thought Sakura. Her Inner said, _**"Cute? More like hot!"**_

"_Oh shut up,"_ Sakura said to her Inner.

Without thinking, Sakura asked Sasuke, "Sasuke-kun, would you like to travel with us?" Naruto turned around and stared at Sakura like she was crazy. Sasuke just gave her an emotionless stare.

"Sakura-chan, are you crazy? No way am I traveling with a guy like…" Naruto was interrupted by Sasuke.

"I have no intention to travel with you weaklings anyway. You'll just drag me down." Now Naruto was twitching like crazy.

"_Weak? WEAK?! Did he just call us weak?!" _Sakura yelled inside her head. She immediately stomped over to Sasuke, grabbed his collar, and hoisted him up. (AN: Wow, scary much?)

"You have the guts to call us weak?! You emotionless bastard!" Sakura started shaking him by the collar, but Sasuke still didn't show any signs of emotion.

"_Damn, he's completely void of emotion!"_ Sakura thought. Her Inner nodded, agreeing with her.

After a while, Sakura stopped shaking Sasuke and put him down. She then said, "You are completely void of emotion, you know that?!"

Sasuke just muttered his trademark "hn" to answer Sakura. She was getting pissed off by the second.

"Hey, what's with your attitude?!" Naruto shouted at Sasuke. Then he continued, "You know what, it'll be better if you didn't join us. Go away!"

"Naruto, don't waste your energy on this guy. He says we'll just drag him down. Hm, I wonder what he'll do when he finds out in the future that you might defeat your father, Minato Namikaze." At the mention of Minato's name, Sasuke turned around shocked.

"You-You are Minato Namikaze's son?" Sasuke was clearly in a state of shock. Naruto grinned, seeing as that had an impact on Sasuke.

"Yep! You know, you're gonna have some competition if you…" Sasuke interrupted Naruto again.

"If your father's the champion, then do you someone by the name of Itachi Uchiha?" Naruto pondered the name for a moment, but then Sakura spoke up.

"Oh, I know him. He's the strongest person in the Elite Four. Hold on, is he related to you in some way?" Sasuke's face became harder, more serious when he heard Sakura's question.

"He's my older brother. I aim to defeat him in battle. That is all I care about," said Sasuke in a very serious voice.

"So why won't you come with us?" said Sakura, going through a very fast mood change.

Naruto gave her a look which was translated as, "Are you crazy, Sakura-chan?! This guy's just gonna pick fights with us!"

"I think it's ok, Naruto. Who knows? Maybe we'll even cure him of that emotionless attitude." After saying that, Sakura winked at the young blond boy. Naruto grinned at the emotionless attitude joke.

"Fine. If Sakura-chan's ok with it, then so am I," said Naruto, admitting defeat.

Sasuke still doesn't look very sure about traveling with Naruto and Sakura though. But finally, he said, "Fine. I'll come with you two, but only so that I'll get to Itachi, no more." Sakura smiled and Naruto grinned. Then they both gave each other high fives.

"Great! We're heading to Rustboro City now. I'm gonna enter a contest there, and Naruto's, I think, gonna challenge the gym leader there. What're you gonna do, Sasuke-kun?" asked Sakura. (AN: Serious mood swing. First, she's insulting Sasuke, and now she's calling him Sasuke-kun… But I just think her calling Sasuke-kun is more normal.)

"If I'm going to get to the Elite Four, I might as well be challenging the gym leaders," replied Sasuke.

"Hey, did you guys hear that?" asked Naruto. Sakura and Sasuke just gave him confused stares.

"Hear what?" asked Sakura. When she listened more, she could hear something beeping. She said, "Do you mean the beeping sound?"

Naruto nodded and said, "Yeah. Where's it coming from?"

Sasuke took out his Pokedex, which was beeping. "Maybe it's this." Sakura and Naruto then took out their Pokedexes, and sure enough, their Pokedexes were also beeping.

"So you're a Pokedex trainer too, Teme?" asked Naruto. At the mention of "Teme", Sasuke twitched.

"Don't call me a Teme, Dobe. And yes, I have a Pokedex." This time Naruto had a vein popping out of his head.

"Who're you calling a Dobe, Te…" Naruto was interrupted by Sakura.

"Will you two cut it out?!" she exploded.

Naruto cowered and uttered a, "Yes Ma'am."

"Good, now how do you stop this beeping?" Sakura asked herself as she messed around with some buttons on the Pokedex. She eventually got her Pokedex to stop beeping, and showed Naruto and Sasuke how to stop the beeping.

"Thanks Sakura-chan," said Naruto, putting his Pokedex back into his bag. Sakura returned Torchic and Skitty to their Pokeballs, and put them in her bag. Naruto did the same to his Mudkip and Starly.

"Come on, let's go. To Rustboro City! Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted. A ringing sound ruined his moment.

"Argh, it's my Pokegear." Naruto frantically searched in his bag for his Pokegear. When he got it out, he checked the Caller's ID, and smiled.

"Hey, mom's calling already?" Naruto pushed a button and a voice started to talk.

"Naruto honey. How are you? Where are you right now? Have you made any friends?" Kushina started bombarding Naruto with questions.

"Mom, mom, wait, stop! First, yeah, I'm fine. Second, I'm heading towards Rustboro City, and third, yeah, I've made some friends," answered Naruto. Sakura spoke into the Pokegear next.

"Nice to meet you, Kushina-san. I'm Sakura Haruno," said Sakura. (AN: Minato's famous, so his family is too. Naruto's not that famous though, but reporters have interviewed his mother lots of times. That's how Sakura knew Kushina's name.)

"Sasuke-kun, greet Kushina-san," whispered Sakura. Sasuke uttered his trademark "hn", but said a light hello to Kushina anyway.

"Nice to meet you Sakura-san, Sasuke-san. Naruto's not being a drawback is he?" Sakura then giggled a bit along with Kushina. Naruto, the person holding the Pokegear, was turning red.

"M-Mom. I'm not a drawback!" Naruto told his mother.

Kushina laughed some more and just said, "Ok, Naruto, I know. By the way, your father's right beside me." Naruto's eyes widened and Sasuke's ears perked up.

"What? But isn't Dad at Ever Grande…" Kushina then interrupted Naruto.

"Well, he got someone else to cover for him, one of the Elite Four." Naruto mouthed an "oh", and asked for his dad.

"Naruto, how're you doing?" asked Minato.

Naruto answered, "Fine Dad. Well, more than fine. I've already gotten through Petalburg Forest." Minato then laughed in the background.

"Good for you. Did you catch any new Pokemon? Anything got in your way?" Naruto remembered him capturing Starly, meeting Sakura, and battling the three villains.

"Yeah Dad. I caught a Starly and met Sakura-chan in the Petalburg Forest. Not only that, but me and Sakura-chan had to battle three villains. They called themselves Team Sound or something like that." Minata went silent on the other side. Naruto became confused, and kept calling his dad.

"Naruto, did you say, Team Sound?" Minato finally spoke.

"Yeah, yeah. Then Sasuke-teme helped us out," Naruto continued. Minato seemed to be thinking on the other line.

Finally, the champion said, "Alright. Naruto, I advise you to avoid members from Team Sound as much as possible. If they come to you, then fight until you win or get away. Their leader, Orochimaru, is out to get Pokemon that he thinks are worthy of serving him. They must have targeted your team."

Naruto looked surprised, as did Sakura and Sasuke. Sakura spoke to Minato, "So, if they get a hold of our Pokemon, then our Pokemon might not come back to us?"

Minato uttered a "yes" to Sakura's question. At this, Sakura gulped.

Minato continued to speak, "Naruto, I've caught two new Pokemon, and I'm going send them over to Rustboro City's Pokemon Center. When you get there, just tell Nurse Shizune that you're Naruto Uzumaki and she'll give the Pokemon to you. I caught a Vulpix for you, but then I also found a Houndour. You can keep the Houndour, or give him to one of your friends."

Naruto grinned and said, "Ok, thanks Dad! Do you want to warn me about anything else? What about Mom?" Minato and Kushina laughed lightly on the other side.

"That's all I wanted to say, Naruto," replied Minato.

Kushina added, "Take care of yourself! Sakura-san, Sasuke-san. Can you two look after Naruto? He can do some dumb things sometimes." Naruto blushed at that comment again, and Sakura was laughing. Sasuke just muttered a "hn".

"Of course, Kushina-san!" Sakura answered.

"Bye Naruto, Sakura-san, Sasuke-san," said Kushina, then hung up.

"Man, Mom's too overprotective," muttered Naruto as he put his Pokegear back into his bag.

"Well, I think she's nice. You should be glad she's overprotective," said Sakura.

"Hn, can we go now?" asked an impatient Sasuke. Naruto glared at him.

"Have some patience, Sasuke-teme. We're just leaving." Sasuke twitched with annoyance at Naruto's comment and was about to come up with a counter-argument, but Naruto was already running.

"Ah, not again. Naruto, do you even know where you're going?!" Sakura then raced towards Naruto.

Sasuke just walked, following Naruto and Sakura's path, thinking, "I wonder if they'll just drag me down, or help me. I think I should've just kept my decision on no."

Even as he thought that, Sasuke still followed the pinkette and the blond.

* * *

**So, how's this chapter? A lot of my reviewers are asking me if I'm going to have it a NaruSaku or not. So, I'm going to let you guys vote, only I'm gonna add one more pairing. So, you guys can tell me in your reviews if you want a:**

**NaruSaku**

**SasuSaku **

**No Pairings**

**I'll need at least 5 reviews, or no new chappie! Vote in your reviews too!**


	5. A New Challenge

**Thanks for the reviews, and even more thanks to the people who voted for a couple! I am soooooo sorry that this came so late! I was really busy since it was the end of the third quarter… **

**CleverPhoenix**: Yep, a Vulpix. Thanks for the comment too! It's ok if you can't decide on what to vote.

**-Lord Of Lions-**: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it! Ok, I got one vote for SasuSaku now. ^_^ You have a nice/funny reason too!

**Kazama the shell bullet**: Thanks for the compliment! Well, right now I'm like you, busy to write cuz of school, but I'll try to update as fast as I can.

**KibiNoChoco ()**: Thank you! And thanks for your vote. (kinda vote anyway ^_^)

**Madara Uchiha (x2)**: I'm really busy with school work right now, so I might update

slower than usual, but here's the next chapter!

**lpride21**: I know I skipped the Petalburg Gym, but I just did it because I'll be coming back to it. Vulpix is the only Pokemon Naruto's gonna receive as a gift, so I'm not gonna make him look weak.

* * *

**A New Challenge**

Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke walked, and walked, and walked. Rustboro City seemed to be a long way away. Not only that, but they kept being attacked by wild Pokemon.

"We're never gonna get to Rustboro City!" cried out Naruto, already impatient. Sasuke just said a "hn" and Sakura kept quiet.

The three of them kept walking with Naruto's whining. Suddenly they were attacked by some wild Pokemon, a Volbeat, Electrike, and Dustox.

Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke took out their Pokedexes to examine each one of them.

**Volbeat, the Firefly Pokemon. With the arrival of night, Volbeat emits ****light from its tail****. It communicates with others by adjusting the intensity and flashing of its light. This Pokémon is attracted by the sweet aroma of ****Illumise****.**

**Electrike, the Lightning Pokemon. Electrike stores electricity in its long body hair. This Pokémon stimulates its leg muscles with electric charges. These jolts of power give its legs explosive acceleration performance.**

**Dustox, the Poison Moth Pokemon. When Dustox flaps its wings, a fine dust is scattered all over. This dust is actually a powerful poison that will even make a pro wrestler sick. This Pokémon searches for food using its antennae like radar.**

Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke took out a Pokeball each, and threw them at almost the same time.

"Come on out, Mudkip!" shouted Naruto, as he threw Mudkip's Pokeball.

"Go, Treecko," said Sasuke and threw Treecko's Pokeball.

"Alright Torchic, on stage!" cried Sakura as she threw out Torchic's Pokeball.

Mudkip, Treecko, and Torchic came out and started attacking each wild Pokemon.

"Mudkip, use Water Gun!" commanted Naruto. Mudkip threw a jet of water towards Dustox.

"Treecko, use Quick Attack," said Sasuke. Treecko rushed towards Electrike with a white light trailing behind him.

"Torchic, use peck!" Torchic jumped high in the air with his beak glowing, and dove towards Volbeat, beak first.

All three Pokemons' attacks hit their opponents. The three wild Pokemon fought back though. Dustox used Poison Powder, Electrike used Thunder Wave, and Volbeat used Signal Beam.

Mudkip was running left and right, trying to avoid the powder. Treecko was running around Electrike, trying to get the Thunder Wave attack to hit the electric Pokemon instead. Torchic was dancing to avoid the Signal Beam attack.

Treecko got the Thunder Wave attack to hit Electrike instead of him. Mudkip however, was a bit too slow to avoid the Poison Powder attack so he got sprayed with it. Torchic, meanwhile, was still running and dancing to avoid the beams.

"Treecko, pound!" commanded Sasuke. Treecko stopped running and hit Electrike hard. Electrike slid backwards, but ran towards Treecko again, using a spark attack. Treecko flew back, hitting a tree, from the impact.

"Sneasel, come out!" ordered Sasuke, and threw out another Pokeball. Sneasel came out and slashed at Electrike, causing it to stumble back. Sneasel landed beside Treecko and helped him up.

Without any further commands, Sneasel and Treecko did a double quick attack on Electrike. The electric type Pokemon slid back again, and Sneasel slashed it to finish it off.

Sasuke walked towards his Pokemon and returned them to their Pokeballs. He just uttered a slight "hn" and watched his two comrades battle the other two wild Pokemon.

Naruto and Sakura saw Sasuke just standing and watching. They both started shouting at him, but he just ignored them. Frustrated, Naruto and Sakura both went back to their battles.

"Naruto, catch!" shouted Sakura. She threw a small bottle to Naruto, an antidote. The blond boy ran towards his Mudkip and sprayed the antidote on him, curing him instantly. Mudkip shook his head, and tackled Dustox. The Poison Moth Pokemon used a Gust attack, knocking Mudkip off his feet/paws.

Mudkip got back up immediately and sprayed the Dustox with a Water Gun attack again, but missed it. Dustox then rammed into Mudkip, making him tumble backwards. The determined Mudkip didn't back down. He shot many Water Gun attacks at the Dustox, and a couple of the attacks hit it. The Poison Moth Pokemon slowed down; that gave Mudkip an opening. The Mud Fish Pokemon tackled Dustox, knocking it out.

"Nice job Mudkip!" congratulated Naruto as he hugged it. Then he returned his Pokemon to his Pokeball. He was about to go help Sakura when he felt a hand on his shoulder, Sasuke hand. Naruto was about to protest when Sasuke just shook his head, telling Naruto to let Sakura fight her own battle. The blond relaxed a bit and watched the pinkette's fight.

"_Ok, Torchic's dancing right now, and those two aren't helping me! Just great," _thought Sakura.

"Torchic, roll over on one side!" Torchic did as he was told, and got out of the array of Signal Beam attacks. Without further commands, Torchic blasted an ember attack at Volbeat. The Firefly Pokemon fell to the ground, burned.

Without giving the Volbeat a chance to attack back, Torchic ran towards it and scratched it. Then, he jumped and somersaulted in the air and blasted it with another ember attack, knocking out the Volbeat.

"_Huh, why didn't I think of getting Torchic to roll out of the beams before? Well, better late than never,"_ the pinkette thought. She looked at her comrades and was about to run over to them, when suddenly they were ambushed by another group of wild Pokemon, but this time, there were a lot more of them. Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke got out all their Pokemon, and started commanding them. Mudkip, Starly, Torchic, Skitty, Treecko, and Sneasel attacked the wild Pokemon simultaneously.

There was a flurry of attacks: Water Gun, Gust, Ember, Doubleslap, Absorb, and even Ice Beam.

Confusion and chaos enveloped the scene, but later, Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke's Pokemon won the battle. The three of them returned their Pokemon to their Pokeballs and ran before any more Pokemon could attack them.

"Sakura-chan, do you have **any** idea which way Rustboro City is?" complained Naruto and his running slowed down to a walking pace.

Sakura whacked Naruto's head. "If I did, I would be leading the way, won't I? I wish I brought my map."

Sasuke, the one who was leading the way, just "hn"-ed, and kept walking. Sakura followed close behind, and Naruto was acting like he was near death.

A long time later, Sasuke saw that they were on the outskirts of Rustboro City. Sakura perked up, and Naruto rushed toward the city with enthusiasm.

"Yes! Finally, Rustboro City! Hello first gym battle, dattebayo!" shouted Naruto as he ran. People were staring at him like he was crazy. Sakura and Sasuke could just die of embarrassment. They walked into the city after Naruto though.

Since Naruto ran ahead of Sakura and Sasuke, they couldn't find him. Sakura's best bet was to look for him in the gym, but first, she wanted to look around the city first. She dragged Sasuke along, even though he didn't want to come.

While the two of them were going around, something attracted Sakura's attention: a picture of a Poketch on the window of a store. She immediately took Sasuke's hand and rushed in the store.

She frantically looked around for a section where they kept the Poketch, but couldn't find it. So, she went over to the counter and asked the worker where the Poketch were kept.

"There's only one left, and I see that that young lady over there is about to take the last one." The young man pointed towards a girl with red hair, and was wearing glasses. (AN: Guess who?)

Sakura instantly ran towards the last Poketch, grabbing it the same time the other girl did. They both glared daggers at each other until Sasuke interrupted them.

"One of you take the Poketch, already," Sasuke said calmly. Karin looked at him with admiration and Sakura just frowned. The red-head let go of the Poketch, and Sakura ran to the counter to buy the small watch.

"Hi, I'm Karin, what's your name?" Karin attempted to flirt with Sasuke. The dark haired boy just ignored her and went towards Sakura. Karin followed him like a lost puppy, but then finally realized that Sakura had already bought the Poketch.

"Since you have bought the last Poketch, you can have one of these gifts," offered the young cashier. He brought out a locket in the shape of a heart, a bracelet with a butterfly ornament hanging from it, a necklace with a diamond shaped decoration on it, and finally, a headband with beautiful decorations on it.

"Sakura, choose one so that we can go," urged Sasuke. Sakura was having a hard time choosing which gift to take.

"Just give me a moment, Sasuke-kun," answered Sakura. Karin then, shoved Sakura, causing her to stumble back.

"What's your problem?!" yelled Sakura. Karin just raised her hand to slap the pinkette, but Sasuke stopped her.

"What are you doing, Sasuke-kun?" asked an enraged Karin.

"What do you mean 'what are you doing'?! You pushed me for no reason!" countered Sakura, since Sasuke didn't say anything.

"You took my Poketch!" shouted Karin. A vein popped in Sakura's head.

"**I** was the one who bought it! Not you!" yelled Sakura. They both glared at each other before Sasuke took the locket for Sakura, and dragged her out of the store.

"H-Hey, come back here! Give me back my Poketch!" Sakura and Sasuke only heard the echo of Karin's voice as they walked out of the store.

"Thanks Sasuke-kun, for both choosing the gift and for getting me away from that… bitch!" said Sakura. He just handed her the locket, grabbed her hand, and started to search for Naruto.

"Sasuke-kun, wait. Can you put this on for me?" asked Sakura, holding up the locket. Sasuke sighed, but he took the locket and put it around Sakura's neck.

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun," thanked Sakura. Sasuke just muttered a not very audible, "You're welcome." Then, he took Sakura's hand again, and started to search for Naruto.

**Meanwhile, with Naruto**

"Wow, Rustboro City is huge!" yelled the hyper boy, attracting attention around him. The blond boy ran around the city, taking in the sights.

Suddenly he stopped and came to his senses. "Hey, where're Sakura-chan, and Sasuke-teme?" he asked himself. Then, realization hit him.

"Ahhhh, I'm lost!" he started to freak out and it took him a while to compose himself, again.

"_Where could Sakura-chan and Sasuke-teme be? The gym? They contest hall? The Pokemon Center? Wait, I still have to get my Vulpix that Dad sent!"_ Naruto thought. He started searching frantically for the Pokemon Center.

Naruto walked around the city, keeping an eye out for his friends and a Pokemon Center or gym. A while later, he found the Pokemon Center, and made a run for it. Once he got inside, he was a bit surprised to see Sakura and Sasuke talking to Nurse Shizune.

"Sakura-chan, Sasuke-teme! There you are!" Naruto greeted. Naruto earned a whack across the head from Sasuke and a punch from Sakura.

"We were looking all over for you, y'know!" said a pissed off Sakura.

"Hn, don't call me a teme either, dobe," Sasuke calmly stated while putting his hands in his pockets.

"H-Hey, I was looking for you guys too!" countered Naruto. Sakura just folded her arms and closed her eyes.

"You were the one who ran off in to the city!" retorted Sakura, when she opened her eyes again.

"A-Anyway, I have to get my Vulpix," said Naruto, changing the subject quite quickly. "Nurse Shizune, I'm Naruto Uzumaki, and I think my dad sent two Pokemon to you?"

"Oh, yes. Namikaze-sama sent a Vulpix and a Houndour. Wait here for a minute." Shizune went away to get the two Pokemon for Naruto. A while later, she came back holding a tray with two Pokeballs.

"Here they are, Naruto." Naruto took the two Pokeballs out of the tray.

He turned to his companions and said, "I'm taking Vulpix, so Sakura-chan, do you want Houndour?" Naruto extended his arm towards Sakura, holding Houndour's Pokeball.

Sakura shook her head and replied, "No thanks, Naruto. I already have Torchic as my fire type Pokemon, so I don't really need Houndour now. You can give it to Sasuke-kun if you like."

Naruto gave Sasuke a sour look before handing him Houndour. Sasuke "hn"-ed first, but then he took the Pokemon anyway.

"I only gave Houndour to you because Sakura-chan suggested it," Naruto mumbled. Sasuke however heard his comment and turned towards him, twitching.

"Well, maybe I wouldn't have accepted it either," he hissed back. Before anyone knew it, the two of them were having a glaring contest again.

"_Not again. They're almost always at each others' throats,"_ thought Sakura, slapping her forehead.

"My, those two are violent, aren't they, Sakura?" asked an unknown voice. Sakura jerked up and looked behind her. A man with white, spiky hair wearing a mask was standing behind her.

"Uh… sorry but, who are you?" asked Sakura with a questioning look. The two boys have stopped bickering and looked at the stranger.

"Haha, of course. Naruto, your father sent me here to help you three. I'm Kakashi Hatake," answered Kakashi. Naruto's eyebrows lifted when he heard Kakashi's name.

"Hey, aren't you Dad's student or something?" questioned Naruto. Kakashi chuckled again and said yes.

"Wait, I thought Kakashi Hatake was the gym leader of Mauville City," said Sakura. Kakashi grinned under his mask and nodded again.

"Another gym leader here?" asked Sasuke. He just turned away from Kakashi after saying that.

"I'm supposed to help you three train so that you'll be ready to battle the gym leader here, Gaara no Sabaku," said Kakashi. Sasuke quickly looked back at Kakashi, and Sakura and Naruto's eyebrows went up in question.

"So Dad sent you here to help?" asked Naruto. Kakashi nodded his head.

Naruto grinned and continued, "Cool! Then can you help me out first?"

"I was leaning more on the side of 'working in a group'," said Kakashi. Naruto's excited look faltered and switched to shock.

"You mean I have to train with **Sasuke?!**" the blond boy screamed. Sakura slapped her hand over his mouth to silence him.

Kakashi sighed and continued, "Yes, Naruto. Working in a group will help you more than you think. Oh, I almost forgot. I promised Minato-sensei that I would take a picture of all of you. Come along, now." Kakashi grabbed Naruto and Sasuke's hands and dragged them out of the Pokemon Center. Sakura followed close behind.

"W-Wait, Kakashi-sensei, where are we going?" asked Naruto as he was being dragged.

"The photo booth of course, dobe," answered a very bored Sasuke. Naruto felt the urge to yell at him again, but Kakashi spoke up first.

"We're not going to take individual pictures. We're going to take a group picture." Kakashi dumped the two boys outside a photo booth, and they scrambled inside. Kakashi and Sakura went in after the two. (AN: It's like those booths where a group can go inside, and the photo comes out very small, automatically. The machine operates itself, and the people have to be ready for the shot.)

The four of them got into their poses. Kakashi closed his eyes and smiled, patting Naruto and Sasuke's heads. Naruto folded his arms and glared at Sasuke, who had on an emotionless face. Sakura smiled brightly and rested her hands on her fists. She was between Naruto and Sasuke, but crouched down a bit so that Kakashi wasn't blocked. (AN: It's like the team picture in the anime/manga.)

After the photo was taken, four small photographs came out of a slot, and Kakashi took them out. They were attached, so he separated them, and gave each one to each "team" member. Sakura immediately put the small picture in her locket when she received it. (AN: The locket has two sides to it, and she put the picture in the right side. The left side is still blank.)

"_This locket is actually handy. Thank you, Sasuke-kun,"_ Sakura said in her head as she gripped the tiny locket in her hands.

"So, Kakashi-sensei, when do we start training?" asked a curios Naruto.

"Soon. In fact, why not make it now? Come with me," said Kakashi as he dashed out. The trio ran after him as fast as they could, to the outskirts of Rustboro. There, Kakashi stood waiting, reading his book, while the three young trainers ran/walked and panted like crazy.

"Took you three long enough. Now, let's begin." Kakashi took out three Pokeballs and threw them in the air.

"Luxray, Manectric, Rotom, go!" Three Pokemon appeared, ready to attack.

"W-Wait **pant** Kaka** pant **shi- sensei. Let **pant** us catch **pant** our breath," panted a very exhausted Sakura.

"Trainers must be ready for whatever challenges lie in front of them. These three will be taking on all of you, and I have already told them to push all of you to the limit. If any of you fail to do so, that person will be tied to a tree trunk, and will not come with the others to go eat lunch," threatened Kakashi. Sakura flopped down on the ground, Sasuke rested his hands on his thighs and kept panting, but Naruto's face showed utter shock and fright, but it also showed determination.

Sakura took out her Pokedex while still on the ground, and so did Sasuke. Naruto followed their lead and took out his Pokedex too.

Sakura's Pokedex started to speak.

**Rotom, the Plasma Pokemon. Its body is composed of plasma. It is known to infiltrate electronic devices and wreak havoc.**

Sasuke's Pokedex blinked to life as well.

**Luxray, the Gleam Eyes****Pokemon. It has eyes that can see through anything. It spots and captures prey hiding behind objects.**

Naruto had his Pokedex ready as well.

**Manectric, the Discharge Pokemon. It discharges electricity from its mane. It creates a thundercloud overhead to drop lightning bolts.**

"I will let you three use whatever Pokemon you have. It doesn't need to be a one on one match. It can be a one on two. You can even help each other out. So, Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto, are you ready?" Naruto grinned his foxy grin, and took out his Pokeballs. Sasuke stopped panting and quickly flashed out his Pokeballs as well. Sakura got up and smiled with determination. She gracefully took out her Pokeballs, as she would do in a contest. They all put away their Pokedexes before taking out their Pokeballs, though.

"Come out, Mudkip, Starly!" commanded Naruto.

"Treecko, Sneasel, go!" yelled Sasuke.

"Torchic, Skitty, take the stage!" shouted Sakura.

The trio simultaneously threw their Pokeballs towards Kakashi's Pokemon. Rotom, Luxray, and Manectric jumped back as the six rookie Pokemon came rushing out.

Kakashi stood reading his book while Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke stood, ready to fight. The team unleashed the first strike to each of Kakashi's Pokemon.

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**Yes, it ends in a cliffie, and yes, I finally updated. I was too busy with school, so sorry for the very, very late update. It'll be like that from now on, because I also have to concentrate on my studies. Please review!**


	6. Begin Training!

**I'm back! Thank you for the reviews! I hope you enjoy this next chapter! By the way, I'm now on my summer break, so I might be able to update more frequently! ^_^**

**

* * *

Begin Training!**

"Mudkip, Starly, Water Gun and Wing Attack!" shouted Naruto. The two Pokemon obeyed and attacked Kakashi's Manectric.

"Treecko, Sneasel, use Quick Attack and Icy Wind!" commanded Sasuke. Treecko dashed towards Luxray, a white trail of light behind him. Sneasel spewed ice shards from its mouth towards Luxray as well.

"Torchic, use Ember! Skitty, use Doubleslap!" shouted Sakura. Torchic breathed out a powerful Ember attack at Rotom, and Skitty ran towards the Plasma Pokemon, slapping it furiously.

"We got them, guys, keep attacking! Dattebayo!" said Naruto with a determined expression on his face.

"_I can't make their attacks like appeals. This is more like a gym battle, more serious. I have to battle like a gym challenger would,"_ thought Sakura as she kept shouting out commands to her Torchic and Skitty.

"You three are still amateurs," said Kakashi while reading his book. Then, he continued, "Manectric, Thunder Wave! Luxray and Rotom, use Discharge!" Manectric paralyzed Mudkip and Starly, causing them to stop attacking.

Treecko, Sneasel, Torchic, and Skitty were all flown back when Luxray and Rotom attacked them using Discharge.

"Naruto, Sasuke-kun, take out Vulpix and Houndour," suggested Sakura. The two boys released Vulpix and Houndour The two new Pokemon looked around in confusion before they were attacked by Kakashi's Pokemon.

"Argh, Vulpix!" shouted Naruto as his new Pokemon was thrown back by Kakashi's Manectric.

"Houndour, get up!" encouraged Sasuke when Houndour was hit by Luxray's Spark attack.

"Guys, gather all of our Pokemon together in one spot!" suggested Sakura. All three trainers' Pokemon ran towards a spot to stick together, but before they could gather, Kakashi attacked.

"Luxray, Manectric, Spark attack! Rotom, Ominous Wind!" comanded Kakashi . Luxray and Manectric started to attack the opponents with their electricity while Rotom sent purple waves of energy towards the rookie Pokemon.

"Eek, Torchic, Skitty!" yelled Sakura as she ran towards her Pokemon to heal them. Naruto and Sasuke went to help their Pokemon too. All of the rookie Pokemon were badly hurt from Kakashi's advanced attacks.

Even though the small Pokemon were hurt, they didn't want to let their trainers down. Sakura suddenly had an idea. She cradled Torchic and Skitty in her arms and ran towards Naruto and Sasuke. She whispered something to them and all three of them nodded.

"So, are you three going to continue? Look how badly your Pokemon are injured," taunted Kakashi. Before he could go on taunting, Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto shouted out attacks simultaneously.

"Torchic/Houndour/Vulpix, Ember!" The three Pokemon jumped in the air and, together, made a huge ring of fire around Kakashi's Luxray, Manectric, and Rotom. (AN: Like Sakura's first time fighting in Petalburg Forest.)

"Starly, Mudkip, combination of Gust and Water Gun!" shouted Naruto. Starly took to the skies with Mudkip on its back. The young Starly blew his Gust attack towards Kakashi's Pokemon while Mudkip jumped off his back and fired a powerful Water Gun attack. The water and wind combination hit Luxray, Manectric, Rotom, on the mark. (AN: The wind and water combination kinda reminds me of Naruto and Yamato's comtination when they were fighting Kakuzu.)

The attacks didn't stop there. Just after Naruto's combination was done, and the electric Pokemon were soaked and hurt, Sasuke got his Sneasel to attack.

"Sneasel, use Icy Wind!" Sneasel jumped high in the air and fired thousands of ice shards at Kakashi's Pokemon. Since they were already soaked, the Icy Wind attack froze them.

In the skies, Starly still had a hold of Mudkip, who extinguished the ring of fire around Kakashi's Pokemon, so that it wouldn't melt the frozen Pokemon.

"Alright! We did it! Dattebayo!" congratulated Naruto.

"Not quite," answered Kakashi, still not looking up from his book. The ice that froze Kakashi's Pokemon suddenly shattered, unfreezing the Pokemon. The three advanced Pokemon ran towards the rookie Pokemon, ready to deliver the final blow.

"What the heck?!" cried a very surprised Naruto.

"Manectric, Thunder! Luxray, Thunder Fang! Rotom, use Discharge!" commanded Kakashi

Manectric hit the rookie Pokemon with a huge blast of lightening, immediately knocking out Mudkip and Stary, but not Vulpix. (AN: Mudkip is a water type and Starly's a flying type, so both of them are vulnerable to electric type attacks.)

Luxray ran towards Treecko and Sneasel, ready with its Thunder Fang attack, and attacked both Pokemon with its Thunder Fang, knocking them out as well. But, Houndour managed to dodge the attack.

However, Rotom's attack knocked out the remaining Pokemon. It discharged blue electricity from its body, hitting and knocking out Torchic, Skitty, Houndour, and Vulpix.

The three rookie trainers stood, frozen in their places. Naruto even dropped to his knees in shock. Sakura, however, got out of her frozen state, and ran towards the Pokemon and treated them as much as she could.

Sasuke hung his head and gritted his teeth in anger. His thoughts wandered away to a person that he, one day, dreamed of surpassing.

Kakashi's voice woke the trio from their trances, "You three can use teamwork to your advantage. During the fight, you didn't abandon each other or try to do everything yourself. What you just did was great. You three can easily beat anyone with teamwork, even Team Sound. I hope our fight taught you three something. Good luck on your first gym battle and contest you three. "

Kakashi then, was gone; like he just disappeared into thin air. His Pokemon disappeared as well. Sakura healed the teams' Pokemon as best as she could using her items and medical kit. But, they went back to the Pokemon Center anyway, just to get their Pokemon up and running again.

At the Pokemon Center, the trio, surprisingly bumped into Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji. Sakura and Ino greeted each other like the best friends they are.

"Ino-pig, nice to see you. Here for the contest, aren't you?" greeted Sakura as she hugged Ino.

The blond retorted, "Of course, Billboard Brow. And you're here for the same reason?"

"Yep, and Naruto and Sasuke-kun's gym matches too," replied Sakura. Ino then grabbed Sakura's wrist and dragged her off, away from the boys.

Ino started talking again, "Sakura, that dark haired boy is so cute!" Sakura giggled and nodded her head.

"He is, isn't he? That's Sasuke-kun. The blond's Naruto." Sakura showed her Poketch to Ino. "Have you gotten a Poketch yet?" When Ino shook her head Sakura continued, "That's too bad. This was the last one in Rustboro. I had to fight for it with some redheaded bitch. Luckily, I got it, partly thanks to Sasuke-kun."

Ino raised one of her eyebrows and asked ,"What do you mean partly thanks to Sasuke-kun?"

Sakura answered, "Well, she was distracted by Sasuke-kun, so I took the opportunity to buy the Poketch. Nice, huh?" Ino laughed and nodded, high-fiving Sakura.

"That's an effective way to get a Poketch, Sakura." Then, spotting Sakura's locket around her neck, she took it and examined it. She then asked, "Where did you get this?"

"Oh, this? When I bought the Poketch, it was one of a few more presents the shop gave away. I didn't actually choose this. Sasuke-kun chose it for me while I was arguing with the redhead." Ino let go of the locket and spoke again.

"It looks really nice on you, Billboard Brow. And it looks like Sasuke-kun cares for you too." Sakura blushed lightly at the comment and shook her head lightly.

"N-No, it's not like that. We're just friends." Ino snorted and teased, "Right, just friends."

Naruto came up to the girls and interrupted them, "Hey, what're you two talking about?" Ino and Sakura acted innocent.

"Nothing, just stuff, y'know," replied Sakura. Ino nodded along.

Naruto, being the kiddy and naive kid he was, just said, "Oh, ok then. Hey, Sakura-chan. Do you have any idea when the next contest is gonna be?"

At the mention of the word "contest", Sakura and Ino looked at each other and ran towards Nurse Shizune, pushing aside poor Naruto.

"N-Nurse Shizune, do you know when the next contest is going to be in Rustboro?" asked Sakura and Ino simultaneously.

Shizune smiled and asnwered, "Of course. There's a contest going on right now, so new entries can't be added today." Sakura and Ino's disappointment showed in their faces, so Shizune quickly continued, "B-But there will be another contest in five more days. You just need to wait a bit more."

"Thank you, Nurse Shizune," said Sakura. Ino, however, asked Shizune another question.

"Nurse Shizune, do you know the dates when the Hoenn Grand Festival is going to take place?" asked Ino.

Sakura looked at Ino and asked, "What's the Grand Festival?" Ino looked at her like she was crazy.

"I thought you would know this, since you always did well at school. Anyway, the Grand Festival is the last barrier for all Pokemon Coordinators, the last challenge. To enter the Festival, you need to have at least five ribbons through a region, Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, or Sinnoh. Kanto has the Grand Festival too. The festival in Hoenn is usually held in Slateport City," explained Ino.

Shizune nodded as Ino explained the Grand Festival. Then, she took out two flyers and gave them to the two young coordinators. "These flyers explain what the Grand Festival is all about and its schedules for future contests. These might come in handy for you two," offered Shizune. The two girls took the flyers. Sakura folded it up and put it in her small bag while Ino put it in her skirt pocket.

"Shikamaru, Choji, let's go. I have to get ready for the contest," called out Ino. Then, turning to Sakura, she smirked. "You'll never catch up to me, Billboard Brow," taunted Ino.

Sakura twitched and shouted back, "Oh yeah?! What makes you so confident? I'll prove to you that I have become much, much stronger, even stronger than you!" Ino ignored Sakura and was already walking away with Shikamaru and Choji.

On the way out, Ino slowed by Sasuke and said in her most flirtatious voice, "See ya next time, Sasuke-kun." She even stressed the "kun" part, making Sasuke get shivers down his spine.

"Grrr, the nerve of that pig," muttered Sakura under her breath. Naruto came up to her waved his hand in her face.

"What, Naruto?" asked Sakura forcefully.

"Uh, there's a gym in Rustboro, so me and Sasuke can battle the leader here and maybe you can watch? Then me and Sasuke-teme can help you with your contest," offered Naruto. Sakura smiled and accepted his offer.

"Alright! Let's head to the gym, dattebayo!" Naruto was out of the Pokemon Center in no time. Sakura and Sasuke had to run after him so that they wouldn't get lost again.

Naruto banged on the door of the Rustboro gym as he called out, "Hey! Is anyone in this place? Open up!" A while later, a man with face paint and in a black costume opened the door and poked his head out.

"Thank you! Hey, are you the leader here?" asked Naruto. The man in the black cat costume shook his head, but gestured them to come in.

"My name's Kankuro, and I'm helping out my little brother run his gym," introduced the man.

"So you're not the leader?" asked Naruto.

"No, my brother is. And I have a sister in another city who's also a leader," said Kankuro.

"O…k. So, mind leading us to your brother?" Naruto asked. Kankuro just kept walking, a sign that he **was** leading the trio to the leader.

Finally, they reached a door, and Kankuro opened it. Inside was a gym designed for rock and ground type Pokemon.

"Gaara, there are some people looking for battles," said Kankuro. All of a sudden, a lot of sand collected in one place, the middle of the gym, and formed the shape of the leader.

"So which one of you wants to go first?" Gaara threateningly asked. Sakura backed up, clearly stating that she wasn't here to challenge him. Sasuke stayed put in his place, wondering if he should go first.

However, Naruto stepped up and shouted, "I'm going first, and I'm gonna win! Dattebayo!"

Gaara narrowed his eyes and said, "Very well. Go to the other side of the gym." Gaara went to his own side and took out his Pokeball. Naruto did the same thing.

"You can use only one Pokemon here, no more than one. I take battles as life or death situations," said Gaara. Naruto nodded his head and got ready to begin.

"Go, Sandslash," said Gaara. A Pokemon with lots of spikes on its back came out of Gaara's Pokeball. Naruto took out his Pokedex to examine it.

**Sandslash, the Mouse****Pokemon. Sandslash can roll up its body as if it were a ball covered with large spikes. In battle, this Pokémon will try to make the foe flinch by jabbing it with its spines. It then leaps at the stunned foe to tear wildly with its sharp claws.**

"Vulpix, go!" Naruto threw his Pokeball, and Vulpix came out. Sasuke and Sakura sighed.

"_Naruto definitely doesn't know that he's at a disadvantage,"_ thought Sakura.

"Kid," said Kankuro, turning to Naruto, "How many Pokemon do you have on you?"

"Um, right now, three," answered Naruto.

"Alright, each side can use three Pokemon. Let the match begin!" announced Kankuro. Gaara stood in his place, motionless, while Naruto crouched a bit, ready to launch his attack.

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**Oooo…. Naruto's first gym battle… with Gaara as his opponent! What'll happen next? And what about Sasuke's battle? Sakura's contest? Review, and I will update! ^_^**


	7. An Old Team Causes Commotion

**Thanks for your reviews! Here are some review replies, and also the next chapter! Sorry I posted this so late…. I'm being too lazy to write more…. -_-"…. Anyway, here's the next chapter! **

**Girl who hates herself ()**: I'm glad you liked this. I'm thinking of that pairing too though. ^_^

**CleverPhoenix**: Haha! Yep he should… naive little Naruto. Here's the next chapter!

**Mika ()**: Thanks! And I'm also trying to get more ideas so that my crossover wouldn't be too similar to Pokemon Master Naruto. I actually asked 789 if it's ok if I wrote a crossover fic like this… So, I'm trying to make mine different, like you said.

**TragedyDawl**: Thanks! I'm trying to develop this fic towards this couple.

**TheMissingPieceInaJigsaw**: Thanks! I'm glad you liked the previous chapter. ^_^

**Kawaii Chibi-kun**: Thank you! Enjoy this new chapter!

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**An Old Team Causes Commotion**

Naruto was about to attack when Gaara beat him to it.

"Sandslash, Sandstorm," said the leader emotionlessly. The Mouse Pokemon brewed up a sandstorm in the arena blinding Naruto and Vulpix temporarily.

"Slash!" All of a sudden, Sandslash appeared right in front of Vulpix and slashed at it. Vulpix managed to dodge it, but unfortunately, it still got a gash on its side.

"Ahhh! Vulpix, Will-O-Wisp!" shouted Naruto. Vulpix sent balls of fire towards Sandslash.

"Sandslash, Dig," commanded Gaara. Sandslash dodged the Will-O-Wisp attack by digging a hole and hiding underground.

Vulpix and Naruto searched frantically for Sandslash. _"W-Where did it go?"_ Naruto asked himself.

Then, all of a sudden, the ground beneath Vulpix cracked a bit, and Sandslash popped up, striking Vulpix head-on. Vulpix flew in the air for a while, then came crashing down. Naruto rushed over to Vulpix, but it was already struggling to get up.

Vulpix then, unexpectedly, fired six fireballs from its six tails. Naruto gaped at the attack. _"I never knew Vulpix could do __**that**__!"_

Sandslash, without any further commands from Gaara, disappeared underground again. Vulpix, knowing the attack now, tried to avoid Sandslash's attack, if possible. This time, however, Sandslash popped up from more than one hole.

It played around with Vulpix's eyes for a while before disappearing underground, and coming up behind Vulpix, slashing it again. Vulpix flew back, but it stopped itself by using its feet to lessen the impact.

Naruto was about to cheer on for Vulpix, but before he could, Vulpix's legs buckled underneath it, and it collapsed. Just then, the sandstorm subsided.

"V-Vulpix!" cried Naruto, defeated. "After only two attacks? Why?!" Vulpix was then returned to its Pokeball.

Sakura explained, "It's not only the Dig attacks, Naruto! The Sandstorm affected your Vulpix as well. Vulpix isn't a ground type, and it's not immune to the Sandstorm, so Vulpix will definitely get hurt in that Sandstorm attack!"

"The girl's right," said Gaara. Naruto put Vulpix's Pokeball back in his bag, uttering a small "Thanks" to Vulpix.

The young blond's face got serious for the next match. "Alright, this time I'm gonna take this more seriously." He took out another Pokeball, but before he could call his next Pokemon, Gaara stopped him.

"Before we started this match, I said that you can only use **one** Pokemon here. So, officially, you've already lost." A vein popped out of Naruto's head, and he looked like he was going to attack Gaara himself.

However, Naruto retorted, "Oh yeah? Well, **I** remember your brother over there saying that each side can use **three** Pokemon each!" Gaara just stared emotionlessly at Naruto while the fox boy fumed.

"I just made Kankuro say that to see if my opponents have heard my words. To see if they pay more attention to me, the leader, or my brother," said Gaara unsmilingly. Naruto looked like he was about to blow up while Sakura was trying to calm him down from the sidelines.

Then, turning to Kankuro, Naruto asked him, "Is that true? Did you just say that because your brother told you to?" Kankuro nodded, not flinching at all. Naruto then, sighed and walked out of the gym.

"H-Hey, Naruto! Wait!" Sakura called after him. Then, she stopped herself from following him. Sasuke was still in the gym. "Sasuke-kun? Are you still going to battle the leader?"

The Uchiha smirked and walked out as well. Sakura followed this time. Once Sasuke and Sakura were outside, they saw Naruto crouching at the entrance to the gym.

"Naruto, you okay?" asked a concerned Sakura. Naruto just mumbled a "Fine," to Sakura. The pinkette talked to Naruto for a while, and comforted him. A few moments later, Naruto seemed to be back to his old self.

"Sorry guys. I was just pissed off at the leader. I mean, I don't really remember him saying that to me," apologized Naruto. Sakura smiled, glad that he was not really depressed anymore. Then, she turned to Sasuke.

"Sasuke-kun. Why did you walk out of the gym? I thought you also wanted to challenge the leader," commented Sakura. Naruto also leaned in, curious.

"You saw how strong his Pokemon are, Sakura. If I could use only one Pokemon, then even I would end up losing to him," explained Sasuke. Naruto and Sakura were about to say something simultaneously, when they saw a crowd gathering together.

The trio jogged over to the scene and asked the people what the commotion was. One of the spectators pointed to a person lying on the ground and Sakura gasped.

An old man was lying, shirt torn open and bloody, on the ground. Sakura immediately went to help him. Sasuke and Naruto followed and tried to talk to the old man. Sakura's medical help made the old man's words a bit more plausible.

"T-They took my c-component," sputtered the old man. "What component?" "Who's they?" asked Naruto and Sasuke simultaneously.

"A-A shady group. T-Three of them. T-The component f-for the submarine," continued the man. Then, he pointed towards Petalburg Forest. "They went t-that way."

Sakura got up and shouted to the crowd to get this man to the hospital, while Naruto and Sasuke said that they would confront the team. Then, the trio ran towards Petalburg Forest.

After spending some time roaming around in the forest, they finally found three silhouettes sneaking away.

Naruto shouted, "Hey! Stop! You're the three who attacked the old man, aren't you?" The three shady characters turned around and took off their cloaks in one swift motion. One of them was a red-headed girl (AN: NOT Karin, the other red-head, hint hint…) and the other two had silver-ish hair.

"Looks like we're caught," said one of the boys. Then, the girl took out a Pokeball and said, "No, Kabuto, because these three won't live to tell who stole the component!" Then, she called out her Pokemon. When it came out, neither Naruto, Sakura, nor Sasuke could identify it. A bird like Pokemon with a musical note on its head appeared.

Sakura immediately took out her Pokedex to see what information it could give.

**Chatot, the Music Note Pokemon. It keeps rhythm by flicking its tail feathers like a metronome. It imitates human speech.**

The other two boys took out their own Pokeballs afterwards. "Hm, I guess you have a point, Tayuya," said the one called Kabuto. (AN: Kabuto Kabutops) Then, turning to her other partner, she said, "Kimimaro, you with us?"

The man named Kimimaro didn't reply, but sent out his Pokemon instead. Kabuto did the same.

A masked Pokemon came out of Kimimaro's Pokeball and an armored Pokemon with scythes came out of Kabuto's Pokeball. Naruto and Sasuke both examined the Pokemon.

**Kabutops, the Shellfish Pokemon. Kabutops swam underwater to hunt for its prey in ancient times. The Pokémon was apparently evolving from being a water-dweller to living on land as evident from the beginnings of change in its gills and legs.**

"_If I remember correctly from those books, I think Kabutops was regenerated from a fossil!"_ deduced Sakura, after hearing the information from the Pokedex.

**Marowak, the Bone Keeper Pokemon. Marowak is the evolved form of a Cubone that has overcome its sadness at the loss of its mother and grown tough. This Pokémon's tempered and hardened spirit is not easily broken.**

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura called out their own Pokemon before their opponents could attack.

"Hahaha! Are you kidding me?" mocked Tayuya. "Rookie Pokemon? Tch, do you really think you can fend us off with **them**? Attack, Chatot!"

Chatot flew towards the rookie Pokemon and started to glow yellow. Then, it showered yellow dust on all of them.

"Kabutops, Aqua Jet," commanded Kabuto. Kabutops surrounded itself with water and tackled almost all of the rookie Pokemon. Only Treecko, Sneasel, and Starly managed to dodge.

"Marowak, Bonemerang," said Kimimaro. Marowak threw its bone towards Treecko, Sneasel, and Starly. Unfortunately for them, the bone hit all three of them, and when it came flying back, they were hit again.

"Ugh, Sneasel, Ice Shard!" shouted Sasuke. Sneasel formed a light blue shard and launched it towards Marowak.

"It's useless," said Kimimaro. Marowak easily dodged the attack by jumping. Then, it shot down, and slammed its bone into Sneasel.

"Houndour, Flamethrower!" Houndour fired a flamethrower attack towards Marowak. Unfortunately for Houndour, Marowak wasn't affected much.

"Too bad. Chatot's Feather Dance has already reduced your Pokemon's attack powers, and my Marowak isn't affected much by fire based attacks," said Kimimaro, as his Marowak kept attacking.

Tayuya continued, "So you brats definitely have a disadvantage! Chatot, Mirror Move!" Sakura's Torchic had sent an Ember attack towards Chatot, but the bird Pokemon used the Ember attack against Torchic.

"Sorry, but fire based attacks will mostly make Torchic stronger," said Sakura. Torchic was already out of the fire and was ready with its Peck attack.

Chatot quickly dodged Torchic's attack and countered with its own peck attack. The two birds continuously kept pecking at each other. Torchic, then, quickly stepped on Chatot's head, and pecked it from behind.

"Sakura-chan, Sasuke! Get Torchic and Houndour to where Vulpix is!" shouted Naruto. Sasuke and Sakura turned to where Naruto's Vulpix was. It seems to be getting ready to use some sort of attack.

"_What is that dobe thinking? Wait, if he means to get all of our fire type Pokemon to get together then….Of course,"_ thought Sasuke. He immediately ordered his Houndour to go to Vulpix's side. Sakura did the same for her Torchic.

"All right. Even though your Chatot's Feather Dance has reduced our attack powers, we can still do this. Vulpix, Sunny Day!" said Naruto. Suddenly, the sun shone brighter than before. Sasuke and Sakura immediately knew what to do now.

"Vulpix/Houndour/Torchic, use Ember, full power!'' commanded all three of them. Vulpix, Houndour, and Tochic, blasted their more powerful Ember attacks at Team Sound's Pokemon, immediately burning them.

Sasuke spotted something in Kabuto's hand; something shiny. _"It's got to be the component that old man was talking about," _thought Sasuke.

He ordered his Sneasel to use Thief to steal the component from Kabuto. Sneasel quickly swished past Kabuto, and grabbed the component. Then, it ran back to Sasuke. The three Pokemon still had their Ember attacks going, so that gave them some time to escape.

"Sakura, Naruto, I got what the old man wanted. Let's go!" said Sasuke. Sakura and Naruto nodded, returned their Pokemon to their Pokeballs, and ran as fast as they could back to the city.

Meanwhile, the members of Team Sound were fuming mad. "How the heck can three kids get away with the component?!" shouted a furious Tayuya. She then turned to Kabuto and continued her shouting, "You! You should've hung on to that component! Even though Orochimaru-sama favors you, don't think you can relax!"

Before Tayuya could go on, Kabuto's Pokegear started beeping. He answered it immediately. "Orochimaru-sama…No, we failed, we're sorry. Yes, ok." Then, he hung up.

"What did he say?" asked Kimimaro.

Kabuto replied, "He's giving us another chance. Get the component at all costs, before **they** do."

"Huh, at least we get a second chance. We can't fail this time. Let's go!" said Tayuya. She was about to run after the trio, but Kimimaro grabbed her collar.

"Going after them won't solve anything. Our Pokemon need medical attention first. We'll strike when the time is right," said Kimimaro calmly.

Tayuya struggled free from Kimimaro's grip and replied, "Fine. As long as we get that damn thing." The three villains returned their Pokemon to their Pokeballs and ran out of sight.

Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke went to the city hospital to return the component to the old man. The man seemed to be sleeping when they went in, so they just left the component by his bedside.

Before the trio could leave, the old man woke up. He saw the component beside him, and smiled.

"Thank you for bringing the component back, kids. I really appreciate it," thanked the old man.

"No problem! By the way, is that um, component, that important?" asked Naruto.

"It's the most important part of the submarine that the ship captain in Rustboro is building. Thank you again, for getting the component back," said the old man.

"Why are you the one delivering it, old man?" asked Naruto.

"I'm the chairman of the Fire Cooperation," answered the old man. He extended his hand towards the three rookies. "Sorry I didn't introduce myself sooner. Call me Sarutobi." Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke shook the chairman's hand, one at a time. (AN: It's the third Hokage, just in case you didn't know.)

"We'll leave you alone now, Sarutobi," said Sasuke. Then, he turned and walked out of the room. Naruto followed close behind him. Sakura was about to leave, when Sarutobi stopped her. He pulled out an envelope from his shirt pocket, and gave it to Sakura.

"Will you give this envelope to someone named Jiraiya when you see him? He's a student of mine. May I know your name?" asked Sarutobi.

"It's Sakura. Sakura Haruno," answered Sakura. She continued, "By any chance, do you have a picture of him or something?" Sarutobi shook his head.

"I'm sorry, but right now, I have no remaining pictures of Jiraiya. I'm sure you'll be able to spot him easily. He's a pretty famous character." Sarutobi then, placed the envelope in Sakura's hands.

"Can you not tell your companions about this envelope?" asked Sarutobi.

"Why not? I mean, they could help with the search," said Sakura.

Sarutobi shook his head and continued, "One of your companions, the blond one…"

"Naruto," finished Sakura.

Sarutobi then continued, "Yes, Naruto. He seems to be a bit… rash. I can't risk having the enemies know about this envelope."

"What about Sasuke? He thinks before acting," said Sakura.

"That child seems to be manipulated easily. He might give the information away to the enemies," explained Sarutobi.

"Then, why me?" asked Sakura.

"You seem to be decent enough to deliver this envelope to Jiraiya. You look smart. I'm sure you'll be able to keep the envelope concealed," answered Sarutobi.

"Alright then. I won't fail you Sarutobi-sempai. I have to go now. I hope you get well soon!" saying so, Sakura took off.

When Sakura caught up with Naruto and Sasuke, she asked them if they were going to challenge the gym leader again.

"Not just yet. That leader is formidable. We'll need to do some training first," answered Sasuke.

"By the way, Sakura-chan, when's your contest?" asked Naruto. Sakura stood there, as stiff as a board.

"Argh!! I totally forgot about the contest!!" Sakura shouted.

"S-Sakura-chan, calm down," said Naruto.

"Sakura, don't worry. Today's contest is already finished. You can enter in the next contest, which is in the next five days," said Sasuke, calmly.

"How did you know when the next contest's gonna be?!" asked/shouted Naruto.

"Unlike you, dobe, I listen to what Nurse Shizune said," answered Sasuke.

"Shut it, teme!" yelled Naruto.

"Guys, you two need to train for your gym battle, and I need help from you two for my contest. Let's get to work!" said Sakura.

The three rookies walked to a clearing and started to train with each other. Sakura tried out various moves for the first round of the contest, while Naruto and Sasuke attacked each other. (AN: With their Pokemon of course…)

Naruto and Sasuke decided not to go back to the gym until Sakura's contest was over. The trio kept training with each other for about five days. Sakura registered for the contest on day 2, and got her contest pass.

By day 4, Sakura was confident about winning her contest. Naruto and Sasuke decided to watch Sakura's contest first, then go to the gym for a rematch.

"Thanks for helping me out guys. You two are the best!" said Sakura, and then she hugged both of them as a thank you. Naruto blushed, and Sasuke just averted his eyes, with a tint of pink on his face.

After Sakura released them, she said, "I'm sure I can win this contest now. I'll show Ino how much I've improved!"

"Sakura, we'd better get going now. Your contest is going to start soon," said Sasuke. Sakura nodded enthusiastically, and ran towards the contest hall, with Naruto and Sasuke trailing behind her.

* * *

**Finally, I got this chapter finished!! I'm getting lazy to write fanfics…. -_-"…. But, I'll still try to write them. My school re-opens on August 10, so I'll have to try to get a few chapters in… if my laziness allows it… Anyway, I finished this chapter! Please review! (I want to raise the number of reviews required this time…. Let's say, 8 reviews! I think that's not impossible, right, readers?) I hope you enjoyed this chapter!! **

**Next Time: An Official Battle between Childhood Friends**


	8. A Battle Between Childhood Friends

**I have ideas for future chapters, but I'm getting lazy… like I said in the last chapter… But, I got the next chapter up! Enjoy!**

* * *

**An Official Battle between Childhood Friends**

Sakura was starting to get nervous when she entered the contest hall. She could see the other coordinators with their Pokemon. The slightly advanced Pokemon intimidated her a bit. She looked around for her best friend, but couldn't find her.

"Good luck, Sakura-chan! We'll be rooting for you!" said Naruto, and glomped her from behind, which just earned him a punch in the face from Sakura.

"Thanks Naruto," said Sakura, after punching him. She looked around for a while, and spotted Ino coming in the contest hall.

"Hey, billboard brow! Ready to lose?" taunted Ino.

Sakura twitched and retorted, "I'm the one who should be saying that, pig!"

"Whatever. Let's go, or we're gonna be late." Ino grabbed Sakura's arm and dragged her off.

"What a drag. We'd better find some good seats. Come on Choji." Shikamaru then lazily walked off. Choji, Naruto, and Sasuke followed.

When Shikamaru, Naruto, Sasuke, and Choji sat down in their seats, the contest was already starting.

"Alright people! Are you all ready to see some great appeals?!" shouted Tsunami, the announcer. A huge wave of cheers was heard after Tsunami's entrance.

"So, let's start! First entry!" announced Tsunami. The first and second appeals came and went, and soon, it was Ino's turn.

"Let's give it up for our third contestant, Ino Yamanaka!" yelled Tsunami, whose voice was followed by cheers from the crowd.

Ino skipped on stage, did a small curtsey, and threw out her Pokeball. "You're on Chikorita!" she shouted.

The Pokeball opened and a cute Chikorita, along with swirling colorful petals came out. Chikorita landed lightly on her paws, and bowed.

"Chikorita, use vine whip to push yourself off the ground!" commanded Ino.

"Chiko!" Chikorita's used her vines to balance herself in mid-air.

"Now, use razor leaf!" Chikorita started spinning in mid-air and releasing leaves everywhere, making a leaf tornado.

"Petal dance, Chikorita!" Chikorita then started throwing out pink petals. Now, the tornado contained a flurry of pink petals and green leaves.

"Finish it now!" commanded Ino. The small grass-type Pokemon then pushed itself higher in the air, and used its vines to arrange the leaves and petals very quickly. Then, she used more vines to outline the leaves and petals as a picture of a flower.

Then, Chikorita slammed down her masterpiece on the ground, retreated her vines, and lightly landed in the middle of the "flower". Ino and Chikorita bowed together, and cheers erupted.

"That appeal must have taken a very long time to master! Let's see what the judges have to say," announced Tsunami.

"That's a great appeal!" said the first judge, Anko.

"Chikorita and Ino must have put a lot of effort into this. Great job," commented Tsunade.

"That's such a beautiful appeal!" said Nurse Shizune.

"Thank you Yamanaka-san. Now let's bring on our next contestan!" yelled Tsunami.

Ino walked back to the contestants' lounge and saw Sakura ready to greet her. The pinkette held out her hand. Ino smiled and took it.

"Nice job, pig. You must've trained your Chikorita well," congratulated Sakura.

Ino kept smiling and said, "Thanks. Hopefully you'll make it to the second round, billboard brow."

"You're not the only person who's been training, Ino-pig," said Sakura.

Then, the two of them turned their attention to the TV screen. A while later, Sakura was called up on stage.

"_Watch me closely, Ino. You'll see I'm not weak anymore," _thought Sakura.

"Now, welcome our next contestant, Sakura Haruno!" announced Tsunami. Again, cheers erupted from the audience, with Naruto's voice being the loudest.

"Go, Sakura-chan! You rock!" the hyper blond shouted. Sakura jogged on stage and took out Torchic's Pokeball. She twirled around once, reared up, and threw the Pokeball.

"Torchic, take the stage!" Sakura yelled as she threw the Pokeball.

"Alright, Torchic, use Double Team!" commanded Sakura. Sudenly, a lot of replicas of Torchic appeared in a circle.

"Now use Ember!" continued Sakura. All the Torchics jumped in the air, and shot Ember attacks, getting the fireballs to form one huge fireball. The fake Torchics disappeared and Torchic geared up for the finale.

"Torchic, finish it!" Torchic dove down into the fireball, and kept diving down, bringing the fireball down with him. Then, he blew out a huge column of fire towards the ground to stay in mid-air.

"Ooh's" and "aah's" came from the audience. Then, Torchic blew the column of fire towards the roof. The fireball came crashing down, and finally, sparkles flew in all directions. Torchic was in the air once again, and he landed safely, with sparks all around him. The crowd cheered madly after the appeal was done.

"Wasn't that awesome? Let's see what our judges think," said Tsunami.

"I'd say that was a really fiery appeal," commented Anko.

"A very unique appeal. It has good use of Torchic's attacks," said Tsunade.

"That was amazing. The fire worked really well," said Nurse Shizune.

"Alright, now let's bring out our next entry!" announced Tsunami.

"Sakura, I never knew you could do something like that," said Ino while hugging Sakura back at the coordinators' lounge.

"I told you, I've grown," replied Sakura as Ino released her hug.

"But you'll never surpass me," boasted Ino.

Sakura twitched and replied, "Well, we'll see."

After all the appeals were done, Tsunami announced, "Now all our appeals have been performed. Let's see which contestants get to go on to the next round!"

Sakura and Ino watched the screen closely, squeezing each other's hand for comfort. Pictures started appearing. Ino's picture came on second, but Sakura was worried that she might not be in the next round. Thankfully, she saw her picture when it popped up four pictures after Ino's.

"Yes! I made it!" shouted Sakura, jumping up and down.

"Congrats, Sakura," congratulated Ino.

Outside, Naruto was cheering, "Yeah! Sakura-chan made it! You rock, Sakrua-chan!" He was quickly silenced by Sasuke, who whacked him across the head.

"_She actually made it,"_ thought Sasuke. _"Hopefully she'll win the contest too. Good luck, Sakura."_

"All right, let's see who's going up against who," announced Tsunami. The pictures randomly sorted themselves, and it turned out that Sakura and Ino were facing different opponents in the first round.

"All right, the first match is up. Good luck, contestants!" shouted Tsunami, and she went off stage.

Sakura and Ino got past the first round, and the second round as well. Then, in the last round, the two of them got to face off.

"Hey, Ino. The matches were surprisingly easy, weren't they?" asked Sakura.

"Well, there're mostly rookie trainers here, so of course it would be easy… for me that is," boasted Ino.

"Just get on stage," said Sakura, twitching with anger.

Ino walked on stage, Pokeball in hand, ready to face her best friend. Cheers erupted as the last match proceeded.

"Ino, you might want to go all out on me," warned Sakura.

"Psh, please. As if I need to do that. I'll finish the match quickly so you won't be humiliated," teased Ino.

"_Oh pig, you're so going down! Shannaro!"_ yelled Inner Sakura.

The match started and the two girls brought out Torchic and Chikorita.

Ino made the first move. "Chikorita, use vine whip to hold Torchic!" Chikorita got her vines out to restrain Torchic, but then, Sakura made her move.

"Torchic use Double Team1" A lot of Torchic replicas appeared, confusing Ino and Chikorita.

"_Damn, which one is the real one?"_ thought Ino, frantically. (AN: Remind you of the Chuunin Exams?)

A second later, a Torchic rammed into Chikorita, hard. Ino lost a few points. Chikorita got back up and Ino shouted, "Use Sweet Scent!" Chikorita released a fragrant smell towards Torchic, making him lower his guard and his clones disappear.

"Now use Vine Whip!" Chikorita grabbed Torchic with the vines while he was off guard, and threw him in the air.

"Razor Leaf!" commanded Ino. Chikorita unleashed a flurry of Razor Leaves. The leaves hit Torchic un-mercilessly. Sakura lost some points for that.

"Torchic, burn those leaves!" Torchic, regaining its confidence, blew out an Ember attack, immediately burning the leaves around him.

"Now use Double Team again," said Sakura. Torchic copied himself again. "Peck!" All of the Torchics' beaks glowed. Then, they all lunged toward Chikorita, who was panicking now.

Before Ino could shout out an attack, the Torchics were already pecking Chikorita like crazy. Ino lost a lot of points. Chikorita was flown back by the impact.

Sakura didn't stop. "Torchic, Ember!" The fake Torchics disappeared, and the real Torchic blew out a powerful Ember attack.

"Reflect!" Chikorita turned the fire against Torchic. Sakura lost a few points for missing the target, but she suddenly smiled. Ino then realized that she made a big mistake.

The fire energized Torchic instead of hurting him, so then, Ino realized that she had just dug her own grave.

Torchic ran up to Chikorita and rammed it with a headbutt. More points were taken from Ino.

"Chikorita, Petal Dance!" Petals surrounded Torchic, both wounding him, and confusing him. Sakura lost some more points.

"Now Chikorita! Poison Powder!" Chikorita released some powder towards Torchic, who got caught in it, and was immediately poisoned. Again, Sakura lost a few points.

"Razor Leaf!" torchic got struck by the leaves again, and was blown back.

"Torchic!" shouted Sakura. Suddenly, Torchic glowed brightly, a sign that its Blaze ability has been activated.

"Torchic, Fire Ring!" commanded Sakura.

"_What the-"_ thought Ino, confused. Torchic leaped in the air, and blew out a strong fire attack towards Chikorita, not hitting it, but making a circle of fire around it so that it won't be able to escape.

The audience murmured a lot of "wow's" and "cool's". Ino gritted her teeth, thinking of what to do. Meanwhile, she was losing points. However, her gauge was still higher than Sakura's.

"I'm not done yet!" shouted Sakura. Torchic ran into the fire, staying there. "Now, flamethrower!" Torchic unleashed a huge flame thrower attack at Chikorita while in the fire.

Chikorita was blasted back the fire. Chikorita went through the wall of the fire circle and still went on until it hit the wall. Even then Torchic didn't stop the flamethrower attack. Ino couldn't think of anything to do.

The buzzer sounded, Torchic stopped the attack, and Chikorita fell to the ground. The two friends turned their heads towards the scoreboard, and both their eyes widened.

* * *

**Cliffie here! Well, like the past chapters, I'll want at least 5 reviews for this fic. Review, review, review! ^_^ (They make me happy… except for flames. Constructive criticism is accepted.) Sorry if the chapter was short for you guys... -_-"  
**


	9. Another Way

**Thanks for the reviews guys! The alerts too. ^_^ I hope you enjoy this chapter! Find out who wins! Oh, and by the way, I have a new forum on my profile, "Spread the SasuHina HATE!" I just don't understand that couple… yeah, it's cute, but it makes NO sense AT ALL. Post some comments on my forum too!! :D**

**Another Way  
**

_Recap_

_Chikorita was blasted back from the fire. Chikorita went through the wall of the fire circle and still went on until it hit the wall. Even then, Torchic didn't stop the flame thrower attack. Ino couldn't think of anything to do._

_The buzzer sounded, Torchic stopped the attack, and Chikorita fell to the ground. The two friends turned their heads towards the scoreboard, and both their eyes widened. _

_End of Recap_

Naruto's jaw dropped and Sasuke uttered his trademark "hn". Then, Naruto began to grin from ear to ear and cheer. "Yes! Sakura-chan, you did it! You won your first contest!"

"No way. Ino lost?" muttered Choji, munching on his chips.

Shikamaru sighed and said, "I kinda had a feeling that this would happen."

"Sakura-chan won! That's what happened, Shikamaru! Dattebayo!" shouted Naruto.

"What I meant was Ino underestimating Sakura, you idiot," said Shikamaru. A vein popped in Naruto's head. Shikamaru continued, "Ino had way too much self-confidence. Anyway, Sakura also had a type advantage over her too. Plus, Chikorita's Ino's newest Pokemon. I even thought that Ino went easy on Sakura for a while."

"Come on Shikamaru. Didn't you see them out there? They were going all out on each other!" yelled Naruto.

"Whatever. You're troublesome," said Shikamaru, ignoring Naruto's comments.

"_She actually won. Hn, Sakura is one determined girl," _thought Sasuke.

On stage, Sakura was overjoyed. Ino still couldn't believe that she lost to Sakura.

"_How? How could I have lost? I have more experience. I should've won!"_ Ino shouted mentally. She shook her head a few times and turned to Sakura.

Sakura was grinning her head off. She held out her hand towards Ino, and her best friend took it. They shook hands and hugged each other.

"I still can't believe I won," whispered Sakura.

"Well, **I **can't believe I **lost**" Ino whispered back. Both of them giggled and released each other.

"Alright, let's give it up for our winner, Sakura Haruno!" announced Tsunami. Sakura received her very first contest ribbon. The young girl couldn't contain her excitement. She was jumping up and down out of excitement.

When all of them were outside once more, Sakura and Ino said their goodbyes.

"When we meet again in a contest Sakura, don't think you'll be able to beat me anymore," said Ino.

"Oh yeah, well I'll be much stronger too, so don't count your chickens before they hatch, Ino-pig!" taunted Sakura.

"Whatever billboard brow," said Ino. Then, she moved closer to Sakura and whispered, "Even though we're going separate ways, don't think I won't forget about Sasuke-kun."

Sakura twitched and yelled back, "Oh please Ino! Like I would let you near him!" Sakura quickly covered her mouth when she realized that she had just announced it for the whole group to hear.

"Ha ha! Well, see ya forehead." Then, Ino walked past Sasuke and whispered, "And see **you** later, Sasuke-kun!" Shivers went down Sasuke's spine as Ino strode past him. Naruto looked confused, and Sakura looked like she was about to blow up.

"Hey, hey, Sakura-chan. How do you feel about getting your first ribbon?" asked Naruto.

"Pretty good. After all, I **did** beat Ino," replied Sakura.

"**Oh, hell yeah we beat the pig! Shannaro!!" **chanted Inner Sakura.

"Oh, you guys are gonna challenge the gym leader again aren't you?" asked Sakura. Naruto grinned, then nodded. Sasuke just muttered a "hn".

"Are you guys really ready to face that guy? The last time I checked, he was pretty intimidating," continued Sakura.

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan! Me and Sasuke-teme will both beat him! Dattebayo!" shouted Naruto.  
"Shut up, dobe, and let's go," said Sasuke as he began to walk towards the Rustboro gym.

"Hey, teme! Wait up!" yelled Naruto as he ran after Sasuke.

When they arrived at the gym, Naruto and Sasuke were, once again, brought to Gaara. Both of them seem pretty confident about themselves this time.

"_I hope they'll succeed. They were so supportive when I wanted to enter the contest. I'll have to return the favor,"_ thought Sakura.

"So, you two have returned," said Gaara in his monotone.

"Yep! And this time, we're gonna win!" said Naruto.

"Which one of you is going to go first?" asked Gaara.

Both boys stepped up and said, "Both of us are going." Kankuro seemed surprised and Gaara still maintained his stoic expression.

"_What the--? Are they serious?" _Kankuro asked himself.

Gaara closed his eyes for a while, and re-opened them again. "Fine. Each of you can only use one Pokemon," continued Gaara.

"Fine with us!" said Naruto as he took out a Pokeball. Sasuke took out his as well.

"_How are they gonna win? Both of them used almost all their time in helping me. Please, please, please win, guys," _ prayed Sakura.

Naruto and Sasuke both released their Pokemon at the same time. "Go, Mudkip/Sneasel!" Gaara released two Pokemon as well. "Go, Cranidos, Dugtrio" A large elephant loomed over Mudkip and Sneasel, but the smaller Pokemon weren't intimidated.

Before the match began, Naruto and Sasuke took out their Pokedexes and analyzed the Pokemon. Sakura did the same thing on the sidelines.

**Cranidos, the Head Butt Pokemon. A lifelong jungle dweller from 100 million years ago, it would snap obstructing trees with headbutts.**

"_That Cranidos was resurrected from a __**fossil**__?! This match seems much harder than the last one. Be careful, guys," _thought Sakura.

**Dugtrio, the Mole Pokemon. Dugtrio are actually triplets that emerged from one body. As a result, each triplet thinks exactly like the other two triplets. They work cooperatively to burrow endlessly.**

"Let the match begin!" announced Kankuro.

"Dugtrio, Night Slash. Cranidos, Headbutt," commanded Gaara.

Dugtrio glowed white and started to attack Mudkip while Cranidos charged toward Sneasel.

"Sneasel/Mudkip, jump up!" commanded Sasuke and Naruto simultaneously. Sneasel and Mudkip jumped together, causing Dugtrio and Cranidos to miss them.

"Mudkip use Water Gun!" shouted Naruto. Mudkip sprayed out water, but it didn't hit Dugtrio and Cranidos. Instead, the water started to flood the gym floor as Mudkip kept spurting out its Water Gun attack.

"Dugtrio use…" Gaara was interrupted by Sasuke's command.

"Sneasel, use Icy Wind!" Sneasel blew out cold wind from its mouth, towards the water. The water immediately froze and trapped Dugtrio and Cranidos. Sneasel and Mudkip landed on the ice lightly.

"Sneasel, use faint attack," said Sasuke. Sneasel walked up to Cranidos, and distracted it. Then, it struck Cranidos with its claws, hard. The huge Pokemon fell down, breaking the ice that stuck to Cranidos's feet. Dugtrio was still frozen solid.

"_**Yes! Take that!" **_cried Inner Sakura.

"_Those two are working really well together," _thought Sakura.

"Cranidos, Zen Headbutt," said Gaara. Cranidos got up immediately. The top of its head glowed and it charged toward Sneasel. The dark type Pokemon dodged the attack, so Cranidos hit Mudkip instead.

"_Oh man, Naruto's gonna blow, now," _thought Sakura. To her surprise, Naruto didn't say anything. He just stayed where he was. His lips even twitched to form a small smile.

Suddenly, Dugtrio attacked Mudkip from below. Sakura hadn't seen Dugtrio break free of the ice. Mudkip took the hit and flew up in the air. Sakura slapped her plam to her forehead. _"It's over now,"_ she thought.

"Now, Mudkip!" shouted Naruto. Mudkip then unleashed a stream of energy towards Dugtrio and Cranidos. Both of them were hit by the energy. Sakura started to say, "Naruto, did you use…"

Naruto answered her question on the spot, "Yeah, that was bide. Mudkip already knew what to do in this case. Mudkip, use Water Gun!"

Mudkip hit Dugtrio and Cranidos again with the water gun. (AN: The water greatly affects Cranidos and Dugtrio since they're both ground or rock types.)

"Sneasel, Icy Wind!" commanded Sasuke. The two ground type Pokemon semi-froze. Both of them can still move, but barely.

"Mudkip/Sneasel, finish it!" Naruto and Sasuke commanded simultaneously. Mudkip and Sneasel combined two of their attacks, Water Gun and Icy Wind. Ice shards hit Gaara's Pokemon, and water followed soon after. The two Pokemon were completely frozen, and couldn't continue battling anymore.

"_No way! The kids won,"_ thought Kankuro.

"_**Shannaro! Naruto and Sasuke-kun beat him! Hell yeah!"**_ cheered Inner Sakura.

"Ha! Take that, Gaara!" boasted Naruto as he returned Mudkip to his Pokeball.

Gaara stood there, as still as a statue. _"How could I have lost? How did the two of them beat me?"_ Gaara asked himself.

"I admit defeat," spoke Gaara. "You two are incredible."

"Teamwork always comes in handy, right, Sasuke-teme?" teased Naruto, jabbing his elbow into Sasuke's side.

"Hn, don't touch me dobe," replied Sasuke. Naruto twitched a bit, but refrained from making a comeback.

Gaara approached Naruto and Sasuke and asked them to extend their hands. Then, the leader dropped his badges in both of their outstretched hands.

"You two impress me. As a reward, I offer you the stone badge," said Gaara. Naruto grinned his foxy grin and Sasuke slightly smirked.

"_I'm one step closer to becoming like my dad! Dattebayo!"_ cheered Naruto mentally.

"_I'll have to conquer more gyms to reach Itachi. Just you wait, Itachi, I'll catch up to you in no time," _thought Sasuke.

Naruto and Sasuke walked away and were congratulated by Sakura. The pinkette gave both boys a hug each, with Naruto and Sasuke slightly blushing.

"You two were great! How did you guys train? No, **when** did you two train?" asked a curious Sakura.

Naruto smiled and answered, "We took up some extra time training with each other when you went to sleep, Sakura-chan. We wanted you to help us too, but we didn't want to wake you up, so, we trained by ourselves." Then, Naruto sneaked a look at Sasuke and thought, _"More like Sasuke-teme didn't want to wake you up."_

"Ah man. I wouldn't mind training with you guys. But thanks for letting a girl get some sleep too," said Sakura. Then, she turned to Sasuke and asked, "Where do you plan to go next, Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn, it's your choice," answered the Uchiha. "I don't really mind, as long as there's a gym."

"_I never thought Sasuke-teme was a person who lets other people make decisions for him," _thought Naruto.

"Um, ok, Sasuke-kun," answered Sakura. She messed around with her Poketch, and scrolled around. "What about Dewford? We'll need transportation though."

"What kind of transportation?" asked Naruto.

"Transportation across water. None of us has a Pokemon that can ferry us across the sea, do we?" asked Sakura. Naruto shook his head and Sasuke just uttered his trademark "hn".

"If you three wanna go to Dewford, I have a friend who can provide transportation across the water," offered Kankuro.

"You do?! Where?" asked an excited Naruto.

"You just have to go through Petalburg Forest again, and you'll see a small shack. That's where he lives," answered Kankuro.

"Oh, you mean that shabby shack?" asked Sakura, recalling the image. (AN: Yeah, I didn't put it there at first, but still, you can imagine it, right?) "We passed by it when we first entered Petalburg Forest."

"Yeah, that place. He can use his boat to send you three to Dewford. Just tell them that Kankuro told you to go there," said Kankuro.

"Thanks cat-eared guy! We owe you one!" shouted Naruto as he ran out of the gym. Kankuro twitched. _"Cat-eared guy?"_ he thought.

"Man, we really showed that Gaara guy a good fight! Dattebayo!" cheered Naruto.

"Hn, dobe, don't get your hopes up just because we won one match. There'll be many more to come," commented Sasuke.

"Stop being so emo, teme. Enjoy the time you have!" said Naruto.

"_Emo? What is that idiot talking about?"_ thought Sasuke.

"Naruto! Don't call Sasuke-kun emo!" defended Sakura. Sasuke gave Sakura a small smile, making the girl blush lightly.

"Ok, let's get through Petalburg Forest again, Dattebayo!" encouraged Naruto. The hyper blond charged into the forest, Pokeballs in hand.

It took the trio a while to get out of the forest. They had to defeat the wild Pokemon that came charging at them, and, at the same time, they had to find a reliable path.

"I see the shack!" said Sakura. The pinkette ran towards the small, run down house, with the boys following her. She knocked on the door lightly, and a small boy opened the door.

"Who are you?" asked the boy. Sakura smiled at him and answered, "Kankuro told us to come here if we wanted to cross the sea to go to Dewford. By the way, my name's Sakura. Nice to meet you…" Sakura trailed off to let him say his name.

"Inari. My name's Inari. If you want to cross the sea, you'll have to see my grandpa. Wait for a while," said Inari.

"He seems nice enough," Sakura told Naruto and Sasuke.

Inari came back hand in hand with an old man, his grandpa. "Who are these brats, Inari?" asked the old man.

"They want to go to Dewford, grandpa. Kankuro told them to come here," answered Inari.

"Hmm? What do you brats intend to do in Dewford? Challenge the gym leader there?" asked the old man.

"Yeah! Me and Sasuke-teme already beat the gym leader in Rustboro, so for sure, we can beat the Dewford leader! Dattebayo!" yelled Naruto, a little too loudly.

"Ahahahaha! Do you brats really think it's gonna be easy to beat the Dewford leader? In your dreams, kid," taunted the old man. "But, I'll get you three to Dewford, just because your determination intrigues me."

"Thanks, old man! By the way, the name's Naruto Uzumaki! Dattebayo!" introduced Naruto. He pointed towards Sasuke and continued, "That's Sasuke Uchiha-teme." Then, he gestured towards Sakura, "And that's Sakura Haruno."

The old man introduced himself as Tazuna. He walked towards Naruto and examined him. "You look like the champion, Minato Namikaze," commented Tazuna.

"I'm his son," replied Naruto quietly. _"I don't want to be known as 'The Champion's Son!' I want to be known as Naruto Uzumaki! And I'm gonna make people recognize me, Dattebayo!"_ Naruto encouraged himself mentally.

"Oh, you're the son of the champion? Good for you, Naruto. Alright you three, come with me," said Tazuna. The trio followed Tazuna and Inari to the back of the shack, where there was a small, shabby boat floating.

"We're going with that?" asked Sakura, not really trusting the small boat.

"Yep. That little boat has accompanied me to Slateport a lotta times too. In fact, I just remembered, I had some business in Slateport. After you brats finish your work in Dewford, I'll take you to Slateport with me. Deal?" offered Tazuna.

"Sure, old man!" agreed Naruto.

"Alright," followed Sakura.

"Hn, whatever," muttered Sasuke.

"Alright, brats, get on! You too, Inari," ordered Tazuna. The kids got on first, then Tazuna got on. He set the boat free, and started rowing.

"I'd better warn you kids to watch out for the Wingull and Pelliper. They sure can get annoying," warned Tazuna. Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke immediately reached for their Pokeballs.

The journey to Dewford didn't take that long. The three young trainers had to fend off the sea Pokemon though. All three of them were getting very annoyed by the Wingull and Pelliper. Finally, **finally** they reached Dewford. Naruto immediately jumped off the boat, and Sakura followed behind. Sasuke got off the boat with Tazuna and Inari.

"Ahhhh! Finally, Dewford Town! We made it, Dattebayo!" cheered Naruto. Sakura hit him over the head for being so annoying. Sasuke murmured, "Hn, idiotic dobe."

"Alright, brats. Do what you need to do. I'll be staying at one of my friend's place. Good luck in challenging the gym leader!" yelled Tazuna.

"Bye old man! See ya soon!" shouted Naruto, waving like a maniac. Tazuna took Inari's hand and walked away.

"Alright! Now we're gonna need to train harder than ever before!" yelled Naruto, energized.

"I don't think there's a contest hall in this town, so I can help you two train too. Don't leave me out this time!" said Sakura, crossing her arms.

"Hn. So, where do you think we should train, dobe?" asked Sasuke.

"Eh heh heh… I have no idea," answered Naruto. Sakura sighed and consulted her Poketch.

A while later, she looked up and said, "Dewford's Granite Cave. I think it should be a decent place to train. We're gonna have to watch out for dangerous Pokemon though."

"That's alright, Sakura-chan! I'll defeat whatever comes in my way! Dattebayo!" said Naruto, running in the direction of the Granite Cave.

"Hey, Naruto, wait!" yelled Sakura, as she started to run after the blond. However, she was stopped by Sasuke, who caught her wrist, and pulled her back.

"Sauske-kun? What's wrong?" the pinkette asked. Sasuke pointed towards a person, someone who looked slightly familiar. Sakura tried to recall where she had seen that person before. Then, she gasped.

"Sasuke-kun, isn't that the girl in Rustboro who…" Before Sakura could finish, Sasuke nodded his head, and put a finger to Sakura's lips.

"_**No way is that bitch going to lay a hand on MY Sasuke-kun! Shannaro!"**_ yelled Inner Sakura. All of a sudden, that person turned towards Sasuke and Sakura. Sasuke stiffened and Sakura's face showed anger.

"Crap. It's really Karin. Sakura, make a run for it," whispered Sasuke. Sakura nodded her head, and was about to run with Sasuke, but was stopped by Karin's voice.

"EEEEKKK!! Sasuke-kun! It **is** you! I missed you soooo much!" Karin ran and glomped Sasuke, tackling him to the ground.

"Hey, get off Sasuke-kun!" shouted Sakura, pulling the red head off her teammate.

"Oh, it's you again. What's with you, bitch?" taunted Karin.

Sakura twitched and retorted, "I'm the one who should be saying that, _Karin_. Don't touch Sasuke-kun!"

"You mean, **my** Sasuke-kun, billboard brow!" said Karin. Now Sakura was really annoyed. She started to clench her hands into fists, and tried very hard not to punch the girl.

"I have a name, and it's Sakura Haruno, red head!" yelled Sakura.

Karin snickered and said, "Springfield Cherry Blossom? The name doesn't even suit you! Your face's too ugly for your name, **billboard brow**!"

Now she's done it. Sakura started to pull back her arm to deliver a punch, but Sasuke caught her wrist again. He shook his head, and Sakura slowly laid down her arm again.

"Don't cause a scene, Sakura," whispered Sasuke. Sakura nodded slightly, grabbed Sasuke's hand, and made a run for it.

"Hey, billboard brow, release Sasuke-kun!" yelled Karin. Sakura and Sasuke were already way ahead. (AN: Too bad for Karin.)

"I think we lost her," said Sakura when she and Sasuke got to the entrance of Granite Cave, where Naruto was waiting.

"Hey, guys! I thought you weren't coming. Let's go in!" shouted Naruto, suddenly rushing in. Sakura and Sasuke anime sweatdropped, but followed him in anyway, still hand in hand.

* * *

**I'm gonna stop it here now. Stay tuned for the next chapter! :) Something interesting's gonna happen... The usual, five reviews mark! Read and review, guys! **


	10. Eevee Protection Program

**Thanks, guys, for your reviews! I appreciate them! In this chapter, you'll see something that is in the Pokemon Adventures manga. By the way, sorry for not updating sooner. I had school work to do… Enjoy this chapter! **

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* * *

****Eevee Protection Program**

"Hey, can anyone see in here?" asked/yelled Naruto once the trio was in the Granite Cave. Naruto kept slamming into the cave walls while Sasuke and Sakura stood in their places. Sakura took out Torchic's Pokeball and released him.

"Torchic, use Ember to light up the place," ordered Sakura. Once Torchic got the fire out, the cave became much brighter. Sasuke found a used piece of wood in the cave and used it as a torch.

"Thanks Sakura-chan!" said Naruto. Suddenly, Torchic's head perked up and it rushed deeper into the cave.

"Torchic, wait! Where're you going?" shouted Sakura, running after her Torchic.

"Sakura, don't be reckless," said Sasuke, and ran after his teammate. Naruto followed soon afterwards. Torchic ran ahead and the trio chased him. When Torchic stopped, Sakura could clearly see what he discovered. A wounded Eevee was lying on the cavern ground, breathing heavily.

"Oh no. Poor Eevee. What happened to it?" Sakura asked herself and she gently lifted the Evolution Pokemon. Sakura examined its wounds, and tried to help it as much as she could with her medical kit.

While she was looking Eevee over, she noticed something around its neck. She immediately recognized it as an everstone: a stone that kept a Pokemon from evolving. There was something else on the string around its neck. Sakura let out an audible gasp. Team Sound's emblem was around Eevee's neck as well.

"_This Eevee belongs to Team Sound? What have they done to it?" _Sakura thought. Naruto and Sasuke finally caught up with the pinkette and were both surprised at the wounded Eevee. Naruto, not knowing much about the Eevee, took out his Pokedex to analyze it.

**Eevee, the Evolution Pokemon. Eevee has an unstable genetic makeup that suddenly mutates due to the environment in which it lives. Radiation from various stones causes this Pokémon to evolve.**

"Wow, that's so cool! But what's Team Sound doing with that Eevee?" asked Naruto when he noticed the emblem around Eevee's neck.

"I don't know. But I do know it's not pretty," answered Sakura. Then, turning to the boys, she declared, "I'll take Eevee back to town, to the Pokemon Center. You two have enough light, right?" The two boys nodded. "Good. Sorry I can't help with your training guys. So, I'll see you back in town?"

"Sure, Sakura-chan!" answered Naruto.

"Just don't get yourself hurt," said a concerned Sasuke with a slight blush on his face. Sakura smiled and released her Skitty.

"I can take care of myself, Sasuke-kun. I'm not weak. See you later guys!" shouted Sakura and she carried Eevee and ran out with her own Pokemon.

"So, teme, ready to train?" asked a competitive Naruto as he took out his Pokeballs.

Sasuke released his own Pokemon and responded, "Hn, I was born ready." The two boys started to search for wild Pokemon to defeat. Sasuke and Naruto went separate ways. Sasuke had his torch, and Naruto had Vulpix to light the way.

Sakura had to fend off the wild Pokemon to get out of the cave. Once she was outside, she started running towards the Pokemon Center as fast as she could. Nurse Shizune cured Eevee in a jiffy, and returned it to Sakura.

"Did you wound your Eevee in battle? It was hurt pretty badly," said Nurse Shizune when she returned Eevee to Sakura.

"Um, it's not my Eevee. It was in the Granite Cave. My guess is that its trainer abandoned it," answered Sakura. She lifted Eevee and carried it in her arms.

"Oh, I see. Well, I hope it finds its trainer soon," said Nurse Shizune.

"_**I**__ hope Eevee's trainer won't show up,"_ Sakura thought as she walked to a room she rented in the center. There, she set Eevee on her bed and stroked its fur.

Eevee let out a small "vee" when Sakura petted it. Eevee's eyes showed fear at first, but it quickly got used to Sakura. She stayed with Eevee for the rest of the day, and kept thinking about Team Sound, and what Eevee had to do with them.

Later, Sakura took a nap, with Eevee by her side. Time passed quickly, and soon, the sun was setting, and night was spreading its darkness over the sky. The door to Sakura's room slammed open, and in came her teammates.

The pinkette jerked up and sleepily greeted her teammates. Eevee licked Sakura's face a couple of times to wake her up completely. When Sakura's eyes were wide open, she lifted Eevee and set it on her lap.

"So guys, how'd the training go?" asked Sakura as she petted Eevee.

Naruto grinned and Sasuke smiled slightly. As if on cue, two "new" Pokemon walked through the door. Sakura's eyes widened, and smiled.

"So how do you two feel about evolving them?" asked Sakura when she saw the newly evolved Grovyle and Marshtomp.

"It feels great, Sakura-chan!" answered Naruto. Sasuke just "hn"-ed in reply. Sakura was amazed by the newly evolved Pokemon. She stared at them for a while, but went back to petting Eevee.

"_Both of them are training so hard. I'll have to do the same if I want to keep up with them!"_ Sakura encouraged herself. Naruto and Sasuke both noticed the look on Sakura's face. It showed determination, but sadness as well.

"Sakura, don't misunderstand us," said Sasuke.

Naruto followed, "Yeah, Sakura-chan. We're not rubbing this in your face."

"No, no, guys. I'm not thinking along those lines. It's just that, I feel like I need a lot more training to catch up to you guys," said Sakura.

"Sakura, you're a coordinator. You should focus on your appeals **and** fights. You have more responsibilities as a coordinator than us," commented Sasuke.

"_Sasuke-kun…"_ thought Sakura and she stared at Sasuke for quite a while.

Naruto broke the silence by saying, "Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to sleep. G'night." Naruto jumped on his bed and immediately started snoring. Sakura and Sasuke anime sweatdropped when the blond fell asleep immediately.

"Sasuke-kun, maybe you should go to sleep too," said Sakura. Sasuke didn't say anything. Instead, he walked towards Sakura, and sat down on her bed next to her.

"I'm not sleeping yet if you aren't," replied Sasuke. Sakura blushed beet red, while Eevee gave a confused look when Sakura stopped stroking it.

"I don't need to sleep yet Sasuke-kun. I just woke up," said Sakura as she continued to pet Eevee. Sasuke then gently pushed Sakura on the bed, along with Eevee in her arms. Then, he covered them both up with a blanket. Eevee popped its face out from under the blanket and let out a confused, "Vee?"

Sakura, even though she just slept, closed her eyes, just to get Sasuke to sleep. A few minutes later, she got a little bit drowsy, and soon fell asleep. Sasuke, who was sitting on his own bed, watching her the whole time, laid down and slept for a while.

Later, at about midnight, Grovyle and Marshtomp woke up their trainers, like they were asked to. Then, the two boys headed out again, to Granite Cave, trying not to wake Sakura. Once they were in the cave, they released their remaining Pokemon and started to train together once again.

Meanwhile, with Sakura, Eevee slowly opened its eyes. Seeing that no one was in the room except Sakura and itself, Eevee nudged Sakura's head. Grumbling, Sakura woke up. When she was slightly awake, she didn't see anyone in the room. Then, she suddenly jerked up and looked around the room frantically.

"_Where did those two go??"_ thought Sakura. She picked up Eevee and ran out of the room. Once she was outside the Pokemon Center, she searched the small island frantically.

"_**Search the Granite Cave!"**_suggested Inner Sakura. The real Sakura was already running towards the cave. She peeked into the opening, and saw attacks flying everywhere: Water Gun to Bullet Seed, Flamethrower to Fury Swipes, and Swift to Ember. Once she peeked in, she saw Sasuke and Naruto on different ledges attacking the Pokemon they saw.

"_Wow… Those two sure are determined. Compared to them, I'm nothing,"_ thought Sakura. Eevee, sensing Sakura's thoughts, licked her face to cheer her up a bit.

"Thanks Eevee. Come on, let's go back. I should leave them alone," said Sakura, as she walked back to the Pokemon Center. Little did she know that a certain Uchiha in the cave was watching her leave.

After Sakura was out of the boys' sight, Naruto blurted, "Hey, teme, wasn't that Sakura-chan?"

"Hn, how should I know, dobe?" Sasuke then ignored Naruto's shouts. Moments later, Sasuke's Sneasel and Grovyle sensed something. So did Naruto's Pokemon. All the Pokemon stopped their attacks.

Footsteps were heard, and a person was coming towards the boys. Sasuke and Naruto got ready to attack if the person was an enemy, but there was no need for that.

"Oh, I see there are trainers here," said the man. He had long, white, spiky hair, and looked older than Naruto's dad, but younger than Sarutobi.

"Who are you?" asked Sasuke.

"I'm not here to fight you. I was just running a small errand. The name's Jiraiya," he replied.

* * *

Sakura pretended to be asleep that night. She immediately noticed it when her teammates came back. Naruto came in and immediately plopped down on his bed and slept. Sasuke quietly shut the door and came in. Before he went to sleep, he stroked Sakura's hair for a while, and mumbled something. Only then did he go to sleep. Sakura, meanwhile, was blushing, hard.

The next morning, once they all got out of bed, Naruto announced, "Alright! Sasuke-teme, ready to go to the gym?" Sasuke "hn"-ed in reply.

"Geez, teme, you never can be happy, can you?" asked Naruto.

"Let's just go, Naruto. You want to get to another town fast, don't you?" asked Sakura.

"Yeah, Sakura-chan! I get'cha. Let's go!" shouted Naruto. The trio walked out the Pokemon Center, with Naruto in the lead.

They hadn't walked far, when they spotted someone searching for something. Naruto ran up to that person and asked, "Hey, you looking for something?"

The girl turned around. Sasuke and Sakura immediately tensed, and felt like running away. Naruto, who didn't know a thing, stood in place.

"Yes, I'm looking for my Pokemon. I think it ran away," replied Karin. (AN: Yes, it's KARIN!) She set her sights on Sasuke and immediately ran towards him, pushing poor Naruto to the ground.

"Ah, Sasuke-kun! Long time no see!" squealed the red head. Sakura twitched and went in front of Sasuke, acting as a barrier between him and Karin.

"What's up with you, billboard brow?" asked Karin mockingly. Then, her eyes traveled to the Eevee in Sakura's arms. It was trembling a lot. Sakura noticed it right away, and hugged Eevee tighter.

"There you are, Eevee," said Karin in a sickeningly sweet voice. "Come here." Eevee just burrowed its face into Sakura's chest in response. Karin twitched and grabbed Eevee by its tail.

"Hey, leave Eevee alone!" protected Sakura, slapping Karin's hand away and smoothing out Eevee's tail.

"And who made you Eevee's trainer, Pinky?" mocked Karin.

"You're the idiot red head who left Eevee in the state she is," snapped Sakura.

"Humph, that little critter's useful sometimes, but not all the time." Then, Karin grinned maliciously. "Let me show you exactly what I mean." The red head then pulled out a small pack from her bag. She fished out a stone from that package.

"_It's a water stone. What's she up to?"_ thought Sasuke. He didn't like what Karin was going to do.

"Now, Eevee, booster!" Karin pointed the water stone towards Eevee, and suddenly it began to glow. A few seconds later, it changed into a Vaporeon, and glared at Sakura. Vaporeon used its tail to slap Sakura in the face, and once Sakura let go of it, Vaporeon let out a strong Water Gun attack at Sakura.

"Ha ha ha ha! Now do you see? This Eevee was designed to react to certain stones. Using nano-technology, we have made Eevee **ours**," explained Karin. Then, Vaporeon suddenly reverted back to Eevee. Eevee, realizing what it had done, rushed to Sakura's side in concern.

"What the heck was that all about?!" shouted Naruto, who was really pissed.

"This Eevee will react to these stones." Karin held up the pack of stones. "And once I don't need it in its evolved form anymore, I can make it change back to the useless Eevee it is. This water stone will make Eevee change into a Vaporeon. The fire stone will make it change into a Flareon. The leaf stone will change it into a Leafeon. This thunder stone will change Eevee into a Jolteon."

Karin pulled out a sun stone and a moon stone and continued, "We've modified this sun stone to make Eevee change into an Espeon, and also modified this moon stone to change Eevee into an Umbreon. And finally, this special stone, a piece of rock taken from the Ice Rock in Route 217 of the Sinnoh Region, can get Eevee to evolve into a Glaceon."

"You…. How could your 'organization' do something like this?!" shouted Naruto, suddenly getting very angry.

"Hmph, you naïve boy. You just don't get it. Pokemon are weapons. We use them to for our own benefits. Why else would they exist in this world?" rambled Karin.

"You're the naïve one!" retaliated Naruto. "You go on about Pokemon being weapons, but you're the one who's not opening your eyes! Pokemon are our companions, not weapons!"

"Hah! You can't deny that Pokemon are made to be used, little baka," retorted Karin.

"Why you…" growled Naruto. Suddenly, Sakura's arm stopped Naruto from pouncing on Karin. "Sakura-chan?" asked the blond boy.

"Leave this red head to me, Naruto," offered Sakura. "I'll show her what Pokemon can really do."

"Please, pinky. As if you can defeat me. You look so weak, I bet all you do is cry," insulted Karin. Sakura grew angrier by the minute, and took out one of her Pokeballs.

"Let's settle this right here, right now," said Sakura, trembling with anger. "If you lose, you **will** release Eevee, and let her do as she wishes."

"And if **you** lose, pinky, all the Pokemon you own will belong to me. Deal?" asked Karin.

Sakura thought deeply for a while and clenched her Pokeball tightly. Then, she raised her head and replied, "Deal." In her head, Sakura was chanting, _"Please don't let me down guys. I can't bear to lose you two. But I can't let Eevee be tortured any more either. I believe in you guys, please work with me!"_

"So we can only use two Pokemon each, ok?" said Karin. Then, she released her first Pokemon. "Go, Linoone!" A raccoon-like Pokemon came out of Karin's Pokeball. Sakura took our her Pokedex to analyze the Linoone first.

**Linoone, the Rushing Pokemon. Linoone always runs full speed and only in straight lines. If facing an obstacle, it makes a right-angle turn to evade it. This Pokémon is very challenged by gently curving roads.**

"Alright, Skitty, take the stage!" yelled Sakura. The cat-like Pokemon came out of the Pokemon with grace and landed lightly, making a grand entrance.

"So you're a coordinator, huh? That's funny. 'Cuz the last time I checked, you trash couldn't even beat a rookie trainer!" taunted Karin.

That pissed Sakura off real bad. "You leave us coordinators out of this! My best friend's a coordinator, and I bet she can kick your sorry butt anytime, like what I'm about to do right now!" yelled the enraged pinkette.

"Whatever, pinky. Linoone, use dig!" Linoone dug a hole in the ground and disappeared in it, and attacked Skitty from below.

The kitten Pokemon rebounded in the air, and spun downwards with an Iron Tail attack without Sakura's commands. It hit Linoone right on the head. Both Pokemon slid backwards, and prepared to attack again.

"Linoone, use Odor Sleuth, and Headbutt!" Linoone charged towards Skitty after using its Odor Sleuth attack.

"Skitty, jump now!" Skitty jumped high in the air, causing Linoone to miss. "Now use bite attack!" The pink Pokemon bit Linoone's back, causing it to yelp in pain.

Skitty hung on tight, even with Linoone's thrashing. A while later, Skitty let go, leaving the Linoone panting. "Now Skitty, finish it! Assist!" Skitty then unleashed a powerful Ember attack at Linoone, burning it for a while, then causing it to faint.

"Linoone isn't able to battle anymore, so Skitty wins!" cheered Naruto.

"It's not over yet pinky. Come on out, Glalie!" A large Pokemon, which was only a face, appeared. Sakura used her Pokedex to analyze the Glalie as well.

**Glalie, the Face Pokemon. Glalie has a body made of rock, which it hardens with an armor of ice. This Pokémon has the ability to freeze moisture in the atmosphere into any shape it desires.**

"_Yikes. I'd better be careful of this one,"_ thought Sakura as she prepared to give Skitty its command. "Skitty use Doubleslap!" The Kitten Pokemon ran towards Glalie, but before it could attack, Glalie used Ice Beam.

Skitty flew back from the impact, but rebounded. "Glalie, use hail!" ordered Karin. Suddenly, it started to hail. Skitty was hurt by the hail, and was trying to resist the impact of the hail.

"Skitty, sing!" Skitty then started to sing, but unfortunately, Glalie managed to not hear Skitty's song.

"Glalie, finish it off! Aurora Beam!" Glalie fired its attack towards Skitty, and the kitten Pokemon immediately got knocked out. Sakura recalled Skitty to its Pokeball and praised it for doing a good job before taking out Torchic.

"_Torchic, please win this one for me,"_ prayed Sakura. Then, she shouted, "Go Torchic, on stage!" Once Torchic appeared, Sakura continued to give her command, "Use Ember!"

"Glalie, dodge it!" The fire just barely touched Glalie. Now it was gearing up to use an Ice Beam attack. Then, it fired.

Torchic quickly didged the beam. "Use Double Team!" commanded Sakura. Torchic quickly created replicas of himself, and rand around to confuse Glalie. "Now use Ember again!" All of the Torchics fired at Glalie, and the fire finally hit it. Unfortunately, Glalie wasn't badly burned.

Karin shouted, "Glalie, use Ice Ball!" Glalie then hit Torchic with its Ice Ball attack. Before Torchic could get up, Glalie shot an Aurura Beam at him.

"It's over. I win," said Karin, smirking.

Sakura's face fell. She was worried about both Torchic and Eevee. Eevee was going to have to go with this girl again, and her Pokemon were also going to have to follow. She cast a look at the place where Torchic was, which was enveloped in smoke. She held back her tears and shouted, "Torchic! Torchic, please get up! I'm counting on you! Please!" Tears were now streaming down Sakura's face.

"Sakura-chan," whispered Naruto.

"_Sakura. Why did you have to accept the challenge for one Eevee?"_ thought Sasuke, starting to feel sorry for Sakura.

Suddenly, a flash of white appeared amongst the smoke. The obscuring smoke then cleared to show a glowing Torchic. It started to grow while glowing. When it stopped growing, the glowing white also left, and now, instead of a Torchic, was a newly evolved combusken.

Sakura looked at Combusken through her tear stained eyes. She wiped her tears away and smiled.

"Sakura-chan's Torchic…" Naruto started to say.

"Evolved," finished Sasuke. He used his Pokedex to analyze Combusken.

**Combusken, the Young Fowl Pokemon. Combusken toughens up its legs and thighs by running through fields and mountains. This Pokémon's legs possess both speed and power, enabling it to dole out ten kicks in one second.**

"Impossible! Your Torchic's supposed to be knocked out! Why?!" cried a very angry Karin.

"Sakura-chan's feelings coincided with Torchic's. A trainer and her Pokemon are one for now. Sakura-chan's determination of protecting Eevee added to that bond. Now this is what I call the Will of Fire!" shouted Naruto.

"Hn, even this idiot knows what bonds mean. Sakura, keep on fighting," encouraged Sasuke. In his mind, Sasuke was thinking, _"Who knew that dobe could explain something like this?"_

"Grr, glalie, use Ice Beam!" yelled Karin. Glalie fired another Ice Beam, but Combusken, using his strong, new legs, jumped high in the air.

"Go for it, Combusken! Double Kick!" As Combusken came back down, he prepared to do a double kick attack to Glalie. Combusken's accuracy was right on the mark, and it hurt Glalie badly.

"Alright, now use Flamethrower before it fights back!" Combusken let out a much stronger fire attack towards Glalie, burning it pretty badly.

"Intensify it, Combusken!" ordered Sakura, and Combusken let out a larger stream of fire. Then, he stopped, and gave Glalie another dose of its Double Kick, making it fly backwards and smash into a tree.

"Glalie, come on, get up you worthless Pokemon!" ordered Karin. Unfortunately for her, Glalie was already knocked out.

"Sakura-chan wins! Dattebayo!" shouted Naruto, jumping up and down.

"Eevee, you're free now," said a very cheerful Sakura. The pinkette walked over to Karin and picked up the bag of stones she dropped. Sakura threw the bag away.

"Sakura, are you gonna leave Eevee like this?" asked Sasuke.

"Yeah, Eevee can do whatever she wants now," replied Sakura. "Let's go guys. Combusken, return." Sakura returned her newly evolved Combusken to its Pokeball, and was about to walk away, when she felt a slight pawing at her foot.

The pinkette turned around and looked down. Eevee was there, with the bag of stones in its mouth, and was pawing at Sakura's legs.

"Eevee, do you … want to join me?" asked Sakura. Eevee nodded enthusiastically, and handed Sakura the bag of stones.

"It seems like if Eevee loves a trainer, and wants him to use the stones, it will not only boost Eevee's power, but will also not hurt her," explained Sasuke. "Sakura, I think you'd better take Eevee with you. It seems very attached to you."

"Eevee, are you sure?" asked Sakura. Eevee nodded her head again. Sakura smiled and took out a Pokeball. "Alright then. Pokeball, go!" The Pokeball captured Eevee, and moved around for a second, then it stopped. Sakura picked up the Pokeball and called out Eevee again. The Evolution Pokemon was smiling her head off. She jumped into Sakura's arms and snuggled into her neck.

The pinkette turned to Karin, who was yelling insults at Glalie. Sakura walked towards her and punched her in the face. Karin went flying into another tree.

"What the…?! Who do you think you…" Karin was then interrupted by Sakura.

"No wonder Eevee doesn't like you. You yell at your Pokemon too much, and it seems like you only have eyes on winning. Let me tell you this. Pokemon aren't machines for battle. They have feelings too. So you'd better start treating your Pokemon better," said Sakura.

Karin returned Glalie to its Pokeball, swore under her breath, and walked away.

"Sakura-chan! That was a great battle! Your Combusken rocks! Dattebayo!" congratulated Naruto.

Sakura smiled and replied, "Thanks, Naruto." She giggled a bit and continued, "Now, I have Eevee, and a newly evolved Combusken. I'm so happy!"

Sakura, then, absentmindedly ran towards the two boys and hugged them both. Sasuke blushed a bit, and returned her hug, while Naruto was grinning and blushing.

Sakura let go of them a while later and smiled again. "Well, come on guys, let's go! You wanna get to the gym, right?" Sakura returned Eevee and Combusken to their Pokeballs and started running with Naruto and Sasuke to watch their newest gym battle.

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**Well, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Please review! The target is now 8 reviews for this chapter! Review, review, review! Thank you! **


	11. Another Gym Trouble Brewing

**Sorry if I'm updating really slowly. I just have a lot of school work on my hands. Well, here's the next chapter, anyway. Enjoy! **

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Another Gym; Trouble Brewing**

"We're here!" cheered Naruto as they entered the Dewford Gym. There, the trio was greeted by a strange man with a tight green suit, bushy eyebrows, and a bowl cut.

"_What's with the hairstyle… and that suit?!"_ thought Sakura.

"_Super bushy brows…"_ was the first impression Naruto got when he first saw the man.

"Well now, we have challengers! Come on in, kids, that's the spirit! Lee! Here are more youthful competitors for you!" shouted the "strange super bushy brow" man.

"Yes, Gai-sensei!" answered a voice from deep inside the gym. "Please, send them in."

"Alright, kids listen up. Dewford's gym leader, Rock Lee, specializes in fighting type Pokemon. So you three'd better start thinking of what Pokemon to use," instructed "Gai-sensei".

"We've already gotten everything sorted out, super bushy brows sensei!" said Naruto, giving a thumbs up.

Sakura whacked Naruto across the head and whispered, "Can you try not to call people weird names? Try to be more polite." Turning to Gai, she commented, "Those two will be fine. They've trained really hard to get here."

"You're not participating, youthful lady?" asked Gai.

"Um, no. I'm more interested in contests than gym battles," answered Sakura.

"Oh-ho! You're a contest lover, eh? Where do you plan on going after this?" asked Gai.

"Slateport, I'm guessing," answered Sakura, again.

"Wonderful! I'm sure you'll do very well in the contest there! Keep chasing your dream youthful girl!" exploded Gai.

"Thanks?" said Sakura, a little freaked out.

"Come on. Let's not delay this any longer," said Sasuke. Gai led the trio to the gym leader's room. In the room was an exact clone of Gai, only younger.

"Hey, are you the leader here Bushy Brows?" asked Naruto. Sakura grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him back.

"I told you to be more polite!" she hissed.

Naruto gulped and muttered, "Yes, ma'am."

"I am Rock Lee, the leader of Dewford Gym. Which one of you will go against me first?" he asked.

"We're gonna team up! Dattebayo!" said Naruto as he and Sasuke stepped up.

"I see," replied Lee. Looking at Sakura, he asked, "And what will this youthful lady do?"

"I'll just watch, thank you," said Sakura.

Lee walked up to Sakura and asked, "Can you please tell me your name, youthful lady?"

"I-It's Sakura Haruno," stammered Sakura, clearly creeped out.

"_**Shannaro! What's with this freak?! Run for it!"**_ yelled Inner Sakura .

"If you are free some time, would you like to go out with me?" asked Sakura, flashing a smile and giving a thumbs up.

Sakura gave a dull look. Sasuke looked slightly annoyed and Naruto was fuming. "Uh, I think I'll pass," replied Sakura.

Lee looked crestfallen. "Maybe if I get to know you better, we can have a friendly date?" Sakura said/asked, unsure of what she just said.

"Yes! Do not worry, my youthful cherry blossom. You and I will be close friends in no time!" shouted Lee. Sakura sweat-dropped at his comment.

"Hey, let's just get this battle over with," interrupted Sasuke, looking a little pissed.

"Yeah, Bushy Brows! Let's battle already!" encouraged Naruto.

"Very well," replied Lee. The leader took out two Pokeballs and threw them out. "Show them the power of youth, Hitmonlee, Hitmontop!"

Sakura's Pokedex blinked to life and mechanically said:

**Hitmonlee, the Kicking Pokemon. Hitmonlee's legs freely contract and stretch. Using these springlike legs, it bowls over foes with devastating kicks. After battle, it rubs down its legs and loosens the muscles to overcome fatigue.**

**Hitmontop, the Handstand Pokemon. Hitmontop spins on its head at high speeds, all the while delivering kicks. This technique is a remarkable mix of both offense and defense at the same time. The Pokémon travels faster spinning than it does walking.**

"Naruto, Sasuke-kun, watch out for the kicks!" warned Sakura.

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan. We'll get through this," coaxed Naruto. "Have some confidence in us. Go, Marshtomp!"

"Go, Grovyle," said Sasuke, emotionlessly.

Marshtomp and Grovyle glared at Hitmonlee and Hitmontop. The four Pokemon kept glaring at each other, when Lee gave the command.

"Hitmonlee, use Rolling Kick. Hitmontop, Triple Kick," commanded the gym leader.

Hitmonlee suddenly rushed toward Grovyle and kicked its side, causing it to spin. The Kicking Pokemon kept kicking Grovyle until the grass Pokemon was like a top, spinning.

Hitmontop started to spin on its head and spin towards Marshtomp, full speed. The well trained Pokemon swiftly kicked Marshtomp three times before it suddenly disappeared, and immediately re-appeared behind Marshtomp, kicking the water Pokemon another three times. Before Marshtomp could do anything, Hitmontop disappeared again, and re-appeared beside it.

"Marshtomp, use Bide!" shouted Naruto before Hitmontop could kick Marshtomp.

Marshtomp glowed white and took the three kicks from Hitmontop. Then, Marshtomp released a huge beam of light from its body, hitting Hitmontop, full force. The Handstand Pokemon did two backflips and got back on its feet.

Meanwhile, with Grovyle and Hitmonlee, Grovyle was starting to get confused because of spinning so much.

"_Damn, there's no stopping that Hitmonlee. Grovyle's going to get too confused at this rate," _thought Sasuke. _"Got it!"_

"Grovyle, use Absorb," commanded Sasuke. In mid-spin, Grovyle emitted a red beam from its claws and caught one of Hitmonlee's legs, draining the energy out of the Pokemon. Hitmonlee, however, used its other leg to kick Grovyle's face, ending the Absorb attack.

"Grovyle, use Fury Cutter," said Sasuke. Grovyle ran, full speed, towards Hitmonlee, and starting slashing at it with its claws. Hitmonlee dodged the slashes, and, after a while, leapt into the air.

"Hitmonlee, use Hi Jump Kick," shouted Lee.

In mid-air, Hitmonlee targeted Grovyle and charged at it with its knee. Grovyle, without any further command from Sasuke, quickly dodged the attack, and Hitmonlee rammed into the gym's wall, hurting itself.

"_Hmph, loser,"_ thought Sasuke. The Uchiha's victory was short-lived, though. Hitmonlee suddenly rushed out again, and rammed Grovyle in the stomach with its Hi Jump Kick. _"What? How?"_ Sasuke thought frantically.

"You must be thinking why my Hitmonlee could still fight after ramming into the wall. You see, Hitmonlee has been trained to endure accidents like these. Hi Jump Kick is like a double-edged sword, Sauske-san. That is why I had trained my Hitmonlee to bear hits like these when its Hi Jump Kick misses," explained Lee.

"_Damn it. What now? That attack greatly affected Grovyle," _thought Sasuke. Grovyle, refusing to admit defeat, started to get up. Sasuke and his Pokemon glanced at each other once, and both smirked in his own way.

"Alright. I'll have to give it my all now. Let's go, Grovyle," shouted Sasuke. "Grovyle, Screech."

Grovyle emitted an ear-splitting screech that made Hitmonlee flinch. Immediately, Sasuke gave the next command.

"Grovyle, use Fury Cutter." Grovyle, again, started to slash at Hitmonlee. Hitmonlee, who recovered from the Screech attack, was now blocking and dodging the slashes.

"Hitmonlee, use Mega Kick." Hitmonlee jumped high in the air, and shot down, launching kicks at Grovyle. On the final kick, Hitmonlee threw Grovyle into one of the walls of the gym. Debris and a cloud of dust shrouded Grovyle.

Naruto, on the other hand, was doing an OK job at battling Hitmontop. Marshtomp was launching its Mud Shot attack at Hitmontop, who was kicking the mudballs away from him, repeatedly. The instant Marshtomp stopped its Mud Shot attack, Hitmontop used its Gyro Ball attack.

The Handstand Pokemon spun at a high speed and hit Marshtomp, making it fly back. Marshtomp, however rebounded in the air, and shot a powerful Water Gun attack at Hitmontop. Hitmontop took the attack, since it had no time to block or dodge it.

"Nice job, Marshtomp! Now use Mud Shot while he's still down!" commanded Naruto.

Marshtomp fired a series of mud balls at Hitmontop, who took the hits again. Naruto made Marshtomp stop the attack when he thought Hitmontop was already knocked out. Much to his surprise, Hitmontop got back up and gave a surprise Triple Kick attack to Marshtomp, sending it flying.

"Naruto-kun, Sasuke-san, now that both of your Pokemon have been knocked out, I suggest that you admit defeat," taunted Lee. Naruto and Sasuke, however, smirked. Lee raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why do you smile when both your Pokemon are knocked out?"

"Oh, you'll see Bushy Brow," said Naruto.

"Now, Naruto!" shouted Sasuke.

Marshtomp immediately got back up and launched its Mud Shot attack at Hitmonlee, whose back was to Marshtomp. Grovyle, on the other hand, disappeared, and re-appeared behind Hitmontop, the leaves on its forearm glowing, and forming into one scythe shaped blade. Grovyle slashed Hitmontop with a surprise Leaf Blade attack, and Hitmonlee was hit with a powerful Mud Shot.

"Switch again, Naruto!" said Sasuke.

"Right with ya, Sasuke," replied Naruto.

Marshtomp and Grovyle switched opponents again, and this time, Marshtomp fired a Water Gun attack at Hitmontop, forcing it into a wall, and Grovyle used its Leaf Blade to defeat Hitmonlee. Both Hitmonlee and Hitmontop got knocked out.

"Since Lee's Hitmonlee and Hitmontop can't battle anymore, the winners are the challengers, Naruto and Sasuke!" announced Gai.

"Oh yeah! We won!" shouted an enthusiastic Naruto.

"That was a great battle you two. I congratulate you. Here, " said Lee, taking out two badges. "Take the Knuckle Badge, both of you. You two have shown me great teamwork today."

"Thanks Bushy Brow!" said Naruto.

"Sasuke-kun, Naruto, that was great! I never knew you two would come up with something like this!" commented Sakura.

"We just thought of it in the cave," said Sasuke.

"Heh heh, of course, Sasuke-kun, of course," muttered Sakura.

"Gai-sensei, it looks like I will have to train twice as hard now!" said Lee.

"That's the spirit Lee! Never let the fire of youth extinguish, my student!" replied Gai.

"Gai-sen..sei…" mumbled Lee with tears streaming out.

"Lee!" Gai shouted, running towards his student, and hugging him, with a dramatic sunset scene in the background.

"Hey, Bushy Brow and Super Bushy Brow Sensei, if you don't mind, we'll be leaving now," said Naruto. Neither of them were paying attention to Naruto, so the three of them just walked out of the gym.

"Sakura-chan, do you have any idea where the old man is?" asked Naruto.

"Yeah, he's at the inn. Let's go to Slateport, ASAP!" said Sakura, grabbing both Naruto and Sasuke's hands, and rushing off to find Tazuna.

Sakura burst into the inn, shouting "Tazuna-san! We're done here!" People looked at her like she was crazy, and the pinkette blushed lightly. "Sorry about that," she apologized.

Tazuna and Inari got up from their table and walked towards Sakura. "So you kids defeated the gym leader, eh?"

"Why wouldn't we?" asked Sasuke, sarcastically.

"Ok ok, let's just go to Slateport ya brats," said Tazuna.

"I can't wait to participate in the contest there! I bet there'll be a lot of experienced contestants," muttered Sakura.

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan. I'm sure you'll do great in the contest!" said Naruto.

"I agree with the dobe, Sakura. You've actually improved quite a lot," complimented Sasuke.

Sakura blushed and said, "Thanks Sasuke-kun. You too Naruto."

The group set off once everyone was in the boat. For a few hours, they drifted in the sea. Night settled upon them, but Tazuna had no intentions on landing. Naruto, however, kept whining about landing somewhere, and Sakura kept mentioning that she would only feel safe on land. Tazuna still didn't try to find land.

Suddenly, Naruto stood up and squinted his eyes. He looked at an outline of something among the fog. Then, he smiled his foxy smile and took out his Pokeball.

"Naruto, what are you doing?" asked Sakura.

"Exploring," replied Naruto. He released his Marshtomp and hopped on it. "Marshtomp, Surf," commanded the blond.

"What the-? Naruto, wait! Don't wander off by… your…self…" Sakura's words trailed away to a whisper.

"That idiot," muttered Sasuke.

"Tazuna-san. We're going to have to go after that idiot," said Sakura. "After all, he **is** our friend."

Tazuna sighed and said, "Fine fine. I'll try to follow that short brat."

Tazuna tried to spot Naruto and his Marshtomp and follow them to wherever they were going. Once Tazuna's boat was near the place Naruto saw, Sakura and Sasuke's eyes widened. In the middle of the sea, there was a ship; an abandoned ship.

"Hey guys, over here!" shouted Naruto while waving to his friends. Then, the hyperactive blond ran off somewhere in the ship.

"Naruto… you…" mumbled Sakura, a dangerous aura coming off her. "Tazuna-san, me and Sasuke-kun will go after Naruto. Will you stay here or come with us?"

"I'd rather stay here than go in that abandoned ship. I can smell trouble brewing," said Tazuna. Inari nodded in agreement with his grandfather.

"Fine. Let's go, Sakura," said Sasuke, hopping off the boat.

In the abandoned ship, Sakura and Sasuke tried to find their friend, but to no avail. The blond had run off somewhere, and who knows what has happened to him?

"_This … is one creepy place," _thought Sakura.

"_**Come on! We're braver than this! Let's show Sasuke-kun what we're made of, Shannaro!"**_ shouted Inner Sakura.

"Sakura, let's split up," suggested Sasuke.

Sakura looked shocked for a while, but shook it off and agreed with him. _"The only way we'll find Naruto is if we split. Hold on, doesn't Naruto have…"_

"Sasuke-kun, doesn't Naruto have a PokeNavi? I thought Sarutobi-san gave one to him as well," said Sakura.

"That dobe probably left it in his bag, which is still on the boat," said Sasuke. "The only things he have with him now are probably only his Pokeballs."

"Oh… alright. Then we'll split up," said Sakura.

"Sakura, I'm confident about your abilities to defend yourself if you're in danger. If you do need help from me, just contact my PokeNavi. Stay safe," said Sasuke before heading off in one direction.

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun," whispered Sakura as she ran in another direction.

Sakura was getting chills just walking in the ship. _"How Naruto stays hyper, I'll never know," _ thought the pinkette.

Suddenly, she heard the flapping of wings. Sakura tried to hide herself as much as she could, immediately, and tried to find out who just landed on the ship.

Both of them returned their flying Pokemon to their Pokeballs. "You sure the detector's on this ship, Konan?" asked a male.

"One hundred percent sure, Deidara. Let's get this over with and get the detector back to Madara-sama as soon as possible," replied the female named Konan.

"_What detector? Who's Madara? Who are they?" _ Sakura mentally asked herself. She saw that the two of them were wearing black cloaks with red clouds imprinted on them. Sakura made a mental note to herself to remember the trademark red clouds.

"Deidara, why don't you go and search for the detector? I'll stay here and keep watch," offered Konan.

"Alright," replied Deidara, as he walked off in the same direction Sasuke did.

"_No, Sasuke-kun!" _ thought a panicked Sakura.

"Hm, well then, you can come out now," Konan muttered. "Little girl!" The blue haired woman released a Glaceon and made it send ice shards at Sakura.

"_How did she find out I was here?!"_ thought Sakura, as she was forced to come out. _"This is not gonna be good." _

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_**Stay tuned for the next chapter! If I have more free time, I'll try to update ASAP! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please review! My goal is to get 100 reviews on this chapter, and so far, I have 61, so I think the reviews are coming in quite well. Still, please review! ;)**


	12. On the Abandoned Ship

**Here's the next chapter for you! I say again, please, please review. I really want to reach my goal, and this is the number 1 story I'm working on right now. Please review after reading! **

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On the Abandoned Ship   
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"_I guess there's no turning back. Help me out, guys!"_ thought Sakura. She swiftly came out of her hiding place and took out three Pokeballs from her bag.

"Combusken, Eevee, Skitty, go!" shouted Sakura.

"Glaceon, attack," commanded Konan.

With one swift and powerful Ice Shard attack, Konan's Glaceon froze Sakura's Pokemon. Then, the Fresh Snow Pokemon turned to Sakura and sent ice shards towards her. The shards pierced Sakura's skin and slashed her arms and legs. In a matter of moments, Glaceon has frozen Sakura's eyes shut.

"_Sh-She's strong! I don't stand a chance against her. I gotta hide, fast!" _thought Sakura.

On cue, Combusken struggled to create a wall of fire to conceal Sakura. Using the distraction, Combusken tried to un-freeze himself and carry his trainer and partners somewhere safe. Luckily for Combusken, he found a secure hiding place in a tree growing on the ship.

A few seconds later, Glaceon extinguished Combusken's fire wall. Konan looked around for Sakura for a while, but couldn't find her.

"_She's hidden herself well this time. She's a nuisance. I need to search for the detector,"_ thought Konan, as she walked away.

"Phew, thanks Combusken. You're a life saver," whispered Sakura, her eyes still closed. "Sasuke-kun, Naruto, I hope you two are alright."

Combusken, Skitty, and Eevee collapsed at the same time. Sakura tried to heal them, but with her eyes frozen shut, she couldn't get any potions for them. The only thing she could do was return her Pokemon to their Pokeballs, let them rest, and stay in the tree until she could see again.

Sakura sat in the tree, pulling her legs up to her chest. Then, she heard some soft noises; whimpers. The noises got closer and closer to her. Sakura tried to identify what or who was making those sounds.

Being one of the top students in her class, Sakura figured out what Pokemon were coming towards her. Once the sounds indicated that the Pokemon were right in front of her, she reached out to them. She felt a small electric current shock her hand. It was confirmed. There were two Pokemon, a Plusle and a Minun.

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Sasuke was getting very, very annoyed. Naruto was nowhere to be found. He even felt like abandoning that blond idiot. He kept searching for him, nevertheless. Suddenly, Sasuke sensed someone's presence, and a voice soon followed his suspicions.

"Swellow, Wing Attack."

Sasuke quickly released his Grovyle from its Pokeball, and it blocked the Swellow's attack. The Swellow flew up and stayed in the air. Grovyle took its fighting stance and prepared to fight the Swellow if necessary.

"Show yourself!" said Sasuke.

Out of the shadows, a person with blond hair and a black cloak stepped out. Sasuke narrowed his eyes and prepared to fight him.

"Impressive. Your reflexes are pretty quick. Now you're in the way. Swellow, Wing Attack," commanded Deidara.

Swellow's wings glowed and it dove, full-speed towards Grovyle. Again, Grovyle blocked the attack with its arms.

"Grovyle, Fury Cutter," said Sasuke.

Grovyle pushed back Swellow and started slashing Swellow with its claws. Swellow dodged some of the strikes, and flew back up in the air. Without any commands from Deidara, Swellow dove down towards Grovyle again, ready with its Peck attack.

Swellow pecked Grovyle numerous times on the head, and flew away once more. While Grovyle was recovering from the Peck attacks, Deidara used the time to deliver an extremely powerful attack.

"Aerial Ace," commanded Deidara.

Swellow flew straight towards Grovyle. The grass Pokemon held up its arms, thinking that Swellow was going to attack him. Much to his surprise, Swellow quickly flew up when it was near Grovyle. As the bird Pokemon was covered in white streaks of light, it dove down to strike Grovyle. The Aerial Ace attack was so powerful that it knocked Grovyle back and knocked him out.

"What will you do now, little boy?" taunted Deidara.

"Che, I'm not out of Pokémon yet. Sneasel, Houndour, go!" Sasuke took out his remaining Pokemon and got ready to fight.

"Looks like you're not willing to give up," said Deidara, as he took out another Pokeball. "Go, Electrode."

"Sneasel use Icy Wind, Houndour, flamethrower!" shouted Sasuke.

"Sorry little boy, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to finish this with one attack. I don't have time to be meddling with you. Electrode, Explosion," said Deidara.

Almost immediately, Electrode glowed white and was surrounded by electricity. Then, it exploded very violently. Sneasel and Houndour were immediately knocked out by the attack.

"Ugh, damn you," cursed Sasuke.

"Now I suggest you stop meddling, little boy," said Deidara.

Before Sasuke could say anything, Deidara's Swellow knocked him out from behind. Deidara smirked and walked off, continuing his search, while Swellow prepared to finish off Sasuke. Suddenly, two strong electric currents stopped both Deidara and Swellow.

"What the--?" Deidara was cut off by more electric currents. "Swellow, use Gust!"

Swellow stirred up a huge gust of wind. Soon, the troublemakers were revealed: Plusle and Minun. Deidara was starting to get annoyed, and started to fight with the two Pokémon, turning his attention away from Sasuke and the detector he was searching for.

While Deidara and Swellow were distracted by Plusle and Minun, Sakura and her injured Combusken were trying to get Sasuke up on a nearby tree that Sakura was hiding in. Combusken, even though it was injured, still wanted to help its mistress. The fire type Pokémon had detected Sasuke fighting, and carried Sakura to him. Combusken was the only Pokémon in Sakura's team who wasn't completely knocked out yet. It had tried to melt the ice on Sakura's eyes, but it didn't dare do it. One small mistake could burn Sakura.

Sakura tried to make Sasuke get up. Sasuke's eyes scanned his surroundings. When his eyes landed on Sakura, the first thing he noticed was the ice on her eyes.

"Sakura, what happened?" asked Sasuke, sitting up.

"I tried to fight another person, but she was too strong. She beat Combusken, Skitty, and Eevee with just her Glaceon! I was lucky I had a revive seed for Combusken, but it only helped a bit," replied Sakura.

Sakura then heard the voices of Deidara, Konan, their Pokémon, Plusle, and Minun.

"There're Pokémon on this ship?" asked Sakura.

"Yeah, a Plusle and a Minun. They're trying to fend off the two of them, Deidara and Konan, but it looks like they're not doing such a good job," answered Sasuke.

"I have only one more revive seed. I can give it to your Grovyle," suggested Sakura. "Then, we can battle the two of them using my Combusken, your Grovyle, and the Plusle and Minun."

Sasuke scooted closer, towards Sakura, and traced his thumb along the ice on her eyes. Feeling his fingers on her eyes, Sakura blushed a crimson red.

"Are you sure you can fight without your eyes?" asked a concerned Sasuke.

"I-I can, Sasuke-kun. Don't worry," stammered Sakura.

Sasuke drew back his hands and searched for Grovyle. To his surprise, Grovyle was no longer in the place where he was lying. Suddenly, Combusken appeared right in front of Sasuke, supporting Grovyle, who was out cold.

"Sasuke-kun, here's the revive seed. Give it to your Grovyle," said Sakura, holding out the small seed.

"Are you sure you don't want to use the seed on your other Pokemon?" asked Sasuke.

"No. Your Grovyle's much stronger than Skitty and Eevee anyway. Please take it, Sasuke-kun, before Plusle and Minun gets knocked out too." Sakura hastily searched for Sasuke's hand, grabbed it, and put the revive seed on his palm.

Sasuke walked over to his Grovyle and put the seed in its mouth. The leaf Pokémon's eyes opened immediately, and it stood on its own.

"Grovyle, we're gonna have to battle," said Sasuke. Grovyle nodded its head once in agreement.

Plusle and Minun crashed into the tree Sasuke and Sakura were in, and, at the same time, the two of them and their Pokémon jumped down. Sasuke whispered what they were planning to do to Plusle and Minun. The two Pokémon agreed. It was at that time when Sasuke noticed that Plusle was holding on to something: an old, worn out book. He caught a glimpse of the cover. The word "Diary" was written on it. Sasuke's curiosity almost got the better of him, but he shook his head and focused on the battle.

"Plusle, Minun, Double Team!" commanded Sasuke and Sakura.

As Plusle and Minun ran towards Konan and Deidara, they created replicas of themselves. The many clones of Plusle and Minun formed a circle around Konan and Deidara as they ran.

"Tsk, these brats are getting more annoying by the minute," said Deidara. "Swellow, use Wing Attack."

"Glaceon, Icy Wind," commanded Konan.

The combined attacks of Swellow and Glaceon destroyed Plusle and Minun's clones. The real Plusle and Minun looked at Sasuke and Sakura, waiting for their next command.

"Grovyle, use Absorb! Plusle, use Spark!" shouted Sasuke.

Sakura chimed in, "Combusken, Double Kick! Minun, use Spark as well!"

Grovyle immediately appeared behind Swellow and sucked out its energy. Combusken ran swiftly around Glaceon and kicked it twice from behind. To top it off, Plusle and Minun shocked Glaceon and Swellow pretty badly.

"_Woah, that's one powerful Spark attack. A normal Spark attack's not that powerful,"_ thought Sasuke. He switched on his Pokedex and analyzed both Plusle and Minun.

**Minun, the Cheering Pokemon. Minun is more concerned about cheering on its partners than its own safety. It shorts out the electricity in its body to create brilliant showers of sparks to cheer on its teammates.**

**Plusle, the Cheering Pokemon. Plusle always acts as a cheerleader for its partners. Whenever a teammate puts out a good effort in battle, this Pokémon shorts out its body to create the crackling noises of sparks to show its joy.**

"_I see now. They're more powerful when both of them work together," _ thought Sasuke once more.

"Swellow, Peck!" shouted Deidara.

Swellow dove towards Grovyle, its beak glowing, and pecked the grass type Pokemon, hard.

"Too bad your grass type moves don't do much against Swellow. Flying type moves work really well on grass type Pokemon, kid," said Deidara.

"You're forgetting that Electric type Pokémon have an advantage over Flying types," added Sasuke. "Plusle, Thunder Wave!"

Plusle sent a string of electricity towards Swellow, paralyzing it. Deidara smirked and commanded Swellow to use Gust. To Sasuke's surprise, the Thunder Wave attack didn't paralyze Swellow much. It immediately used its Gust attack to blow away Plusle and Minun.

"The puny little Plusle's Thunder Wave attack is no match for my Swellow, kid," said Deidara.

Sakura cut in with her command, "Combusken, Ember!" Combusken threw a weak Ember attack at both Glaceon and Swellow. Swellow flew into the air, but Glaceon took the hit.

"Nice, Sakura," praised Sasuke. _"Even though she can't see, she's contributing a lot in this fight," _the Uchiha thought.

Without any orders from Konan, Glaceon froze the fire and shattered it. Then, the ice Pokemon used Quick Attack on Combusken.

Hearing Combusken's cry, Sakura shouted, "Combusken! Minun use Thunder Shock!" Minun threw a wave of electricity towards Glaceon, but the Pokemon easily dodged it, and used its Ice Shard attack on Minun. Then, Glaceon put its paws on Minun, trapping it. Swellow soon joined in, ready to attack Minun.

"Now, before Deidara's Swellow finishes off this Minun, I suggest you kids hand over the detector," suggested Konan.

"What detector? We don't have any detectors," said Sasuke. Behind him, he heard Sakura shuffling around. He turned around to see a small box in her hands.

"_Combusken must have grabbed it somehow. Where did he get it anyway?"_ thought Sasuke.

"Hand over the detector!" shouted Deidara.

Sakura, not wanting to see Minun hurt, handed the detector to Sasuke. "We'll give you this if you release Minun," said Sakura.

Konan picked up the unconscious Minun and steadily walked towards Sasuke. Sasuke cautiously walked towards Konan as well. When the two of them were face to face, Konan set Minun down carefully. Sasuke put the detector in Konan's outstretched hand. Suddenly, Plusle rushed up and used Helping Hand on Minun. The electric Pokemon regained consciousness and used a Spark attack on Konan. She uttered a cry of pain and dropped the detector. Sasuke picked it up and ran as fast as he could. He saw a huge opening on the side of the ship. Sasuke ran towards Sakura and piggy-backed her as he jumped out the opening. All the other Pokemon followed them, even Plusle and Minun.

Once he landed, he made a beeline for Tazuna's boat, with Sakura still on his back. The pinkette was confused as to why they were running away. The ice still hasn't melted from her eyes. Unfortunately for them, before Sasuke could get to Tazuna's boat, Deidara's Swellow swooped down and stole the detector from Sasuke's hand. The bird Pokemon flew high up and back to its owner. Swellow dropped the detector in Deidara's hand. The two figures then disappeared.

"Crap. They got the detector," mumbled Sasuke.

"Sasuke-kun, what's going on? Why are you piggy-backing me?" asked Sakura.

"We almost escaped with the detector, but that Swellow got it back from me," said Sasuke.

"Are Plusle and Minun safe? What about Combusken? And Grovyle?" Sakura kept throwing questions at Sasuke.

"All of them are fine. You don't need to worry so much, Sakura," said Sasuke.

He put down Sakura and walked towards Tazuna's boat. Before he got there, he could see a silhouette of Naruto on the boat already, waving to him.

Sasuke could faintly hear Naruto's voice, "Hey, Sasuke! Sakura-chan! I'm back here! You guys can come back now!"

A vein popped on Sakura's forehead when she heard Naruto's voice. She ominously muttered, "Naruto… you butthead."

"Sakura, let's go. We have to go back to the boat," said Sasuke.

Before Sasuke and Sakura went back, Plusle and Minun grabbed their legs. They had two handfuls of berries and were offering them to Sasuke and Sakura. Sasuke rejected them, but Sakura enthusiastically accepted them.

"Wow, wow, wow! These berries are super rare! I can make a lotta Pokeblocks with these!" cheered Sakura. Turning to Plusle and Minun, she said, "Thank you, Plusle, Minun. You two helped us a lot. We have to go now. Goodbye, and stay safe!"

Plusle and Minun waved goodbye to Sasuke, Sakura, Combusken, and Grovyle. Once they reached the boat, Sakura punched Naruto and Sasuke hit him on the head.

"What the hell was that for?!" shouted Naruto.

"For running off and making us search for you," started Sakura.

"For making us worry and then show up after we spent hours searching for you," finished Sasuke.

"Hey, the two of them have a point," said Tazuna. Naruto glared at him.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry about that. Now let's go to Slateport City!" shouted Naruto.

As the boat sailed, Sasuke and Sakura sat, thinking about Konan and Deidara, what organization they were working for, and what they wanted with the detector. Mysteries will unfold… someday.

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**Done with this chapter! Yay! By the way, I'm done with my high school exams, so I can update more than usual, if I'm not too lazy to! ;D Please, please, PLEASE review! Reviews for this fic are like Christmas presents. I'm really glad to receive and read them! So, PLEASE review! (Like I said, I'm aiming for at least 100 reviews, so I really want you all to review! I appreciate all the alerts and favorites I got, but I also want reviews, so please write a review!) **


	13. The Incident at Slateport

**A big thank you to the people who reviewed! Thanks for the alerts and faves too! I really love your reviews! Keep sending them, please! If you don't get something, you can just ask through a review. Here's the next chapter! Please enjoy! **

**

* * *

****The Incident at Slateport **

Once the boat landed on the beach near Slateport, Naruto jumped out and rushed towards the city. The others sweat-dropped, anime style.

"There's not stopping that kid's enthusiasm," said Tazuna. "Come on, Inari. I have some business to attend to here." Tazuna secured the boat, took Inari's hand and led him away towards the city.

Sasuke and Sakura stood still. With the ice finally off Sakura's eyes, she could clearly see the beach and the city not too far off. She turned her head towards Sasuke, and motioned to go to the city to look for Naruto. Sasuke nodded and started walking towards the city. Sasuke hadn't walked too far, when a flash of pink and red zoomed past him.

Sasuke called out, "Sakura, what's the rush?"

The pinkette looked back and hollered, "I just remembered that there's a contest hall in Slateport, Sasuke-kun! I have to find out when it is!" She made a beeline for the Pokémon Center, first, to heal her Pokémon, and second, to find out the contest times.

"_Hn, still as determined as ever," _thought Sasuke. He calmly walked towards the Pokemon Center as well, to have his Pokemon healed. Once he got there, he saw Sakura talking with Nurse Shizune and Naruto wandering around the center.

"Nurse Shizune, there's gonna be a contest here soon, right, right?" asked an enthusiastic Sakura. She was practically jumping up and down.

"You can't seem to hold your excitement. Yes, there is going to be a contest, but it's tomorrow," answered Nurse Shizune.

Sakura's jaw dropped. "T-Tomorrow?! I'm going to have to get my Pokemon in shape like, now!" Sakura whirled around and ran, full speed out the door. Naruto followed Sakura soon after. Sasuke sighed and walked out.

"Sakura-chan, calm down. I'm sure you can get your Pokemon ready for tomorrow," soothed Naruto.

"B-But, this is too soon! I was thinking of using Eevee, but since she's a new member, and the contest is tomorrow, ARGH!" Sakura clutched her head and started to panic.

"S-Sakura-chan, you have to calm down," said Naruto, crouching to help her up. Naruto glanced at Sasuke, who was slowly walking towards them. "Teme, do something!" shouted Naruto.

"Hn, Sakura shouldn't stress that much about the contest. She's already won her first ribbon. All she needs is four more to get into the Grand Festival. I don't know why she's making such a fuss about it," said Sasuke.

"Gee, thanks a lot, teme," said Naruto, sarcastically.

"**Come on! We can do this! We can easily get through this! Shannaro!"** cheered Inner Sakura.

"I'll have to start preparing now," said Sakura.

"We'll help you like always, Sakura-chan! You can count on us, dattebayo!" said Naruto.

"Thanks Naruto," thanked Sakura. The pinkette was about to go and practice, but something caught her eye. She turned to face the Slateport Museum and saw three shady figures wearing cloaks to conceal their clothing. At one point, one figure's cloak lifted a little, and Sakura spotted a red cloud; so did Sasuke. Naruto was looking at the three people entering the museum as well, but didn't know what the red cloud meant.

"Sakura-chan, Sasuke-teme, what happened to you two on the abandoned ship while searching for me?" asked Naruto, his voice serious.

Sakura spilled, "Both of us were attacked by two people. They were wearing cloaks with red clouds on them. I remember their names were Deidara and Konan."

"You think those three people might be on the same team as them?" asked Naruto.

"Hn, I'm sure they are. After all, I saw a red cloud under one of their cloaks," said Sasuke. He continued, "We'd better check it out."

"Hey, Sasuke-teme, what about Sakura-chan's contest?" asked Naruto, glancing at Sakura.

"Nah, it's ok. I'm more interested in this right now anyway," replied Sakura.

The trio ran towards the museum and tried to spot the three figures. At the entrance, Sakura ended up paying for all three of them. Once they were inside, Naruto saw them walking up the stairs, to the second floor.

"There they are!" said Naruto. The three of them ran up the stairs and immediately saw them. Something that they didn't expect to see was that two figures were backing Tazuna and Inari into a corner.

"_Wait, where's the third one?" _thought Sasuke. Almost immediately Sasuke was knocked out by a Pokemon.

Sakura and Naruto whirled around to see the third person. Naruto started, "Hey, who're…" However, before he could finish, the blond was knocked out by the same Pokemon as well.

"Naruto! Sasuke-kun!" shouted Sakura. Once more, Sakura was attacked, and knocked out by that person.

"Nice work, Zetsu," commented a male voice. The other two had Tazuna and Inari out cold. All of them were taken away by these three figures.

"Ugh." Sasuke's eyes slowly opened, and as he looked around, he saw that Naruto, Sakura, and himself were trapped in a small room. All three of them were tied as well. Sakura was still unconscious while Naruto was snoring.

"Tch, what are those three planning?" Sasuke whispered to himself. He could hear distant sounds coming from the other side of the door. The young boy inched towards the door and pressed his ear against it. He could faintly hear the voices of two people. He recognized one as Tazuna's. As for the other person, Sasuke knew it wasn't Konan or Deidara, since he still recognized their voices. He had never heard that person's voice before. Sasuke started eavesdropping on their conversation.

"Tell me now, Tazuna. What else do we need to get this submarine to withstand the pressure of the deepest waters?" asked Zetsu forcefully. (AN: Yeah, it was Zetsu.)

Tazuna stayed silent, refusing to speak a word.

"We've wasted enough time. Tell me before I **make** you talk," threatened Zetsu, approaching toward Tazuna.

"Grandpa, don't!" shouted Inari, who was tied up as well.

"Leafeon, Shrifty," said Zetsu. Without any further command, the two Pokemon ominously approached Inari. The child let out a cry of fear as they came closer.

"Inari!" shouted Tazuna.

Zetsu turned back to Tazuna. "Now, talk if you don't want your precious grandson to suffer."

Tazuna winced and replied, "Ugh, fine. The submarine needs another heart component. The Fire Corporation was supposed to make it and deliver it to me."

Zetsu stood, in deep thought. Then, he spoke, "According to my sources, the chairman of the Fire Corporation was attacked by three people and they stole that component. However, later, I was informed that three other people, kids no less, had taken the component back to the chairman. Now, the chairman is not on good shape. I have been informed recently that the component had disappeared. Where do you think it might have gone, Tazuna?"

"The first three bastards must've stolen them again, don't 'cha think?!" shouted Tazuna.

"Yes, indeed, the first three people took the component away again. Do you have any connection to them, whatsoever, Tazuna?" questioned Zetsu.

"I don't even know who you're talking about ya crazy plant!" retorted Tazuna.

"Watch your mouth, Tazuna, or it might just cost your grandson his life," threatened Zetsu.

Meanwhile, Sasuke was thinking, _"Wait, Team Sound stole that component again? Why are both of them after that component anyway? What do they want with them?"_ Then, Sasuke recalled what Sarutobi had said about the component. _"__It's the most important part of the submarine that the ship__ captain in Rustboro is building." _ Sasuke's eyes widened a bit. _"Then, Tazuna's the ship builder? What do they want that submarine for? Why do they want to go to the deepest waters?"_

"Urgh, Sasuke-kun?" whispered Sakura as she was starting to wake up. She noticed the ropes around all three of them and began to ask, "Sasuke-kun, where are we? What's with these…"

"Shh," whispered Sasuke. "Come and listen."

Sakura inched towards the door as well and pressed her ear on it. Suddenly, a loud bang was heard and the two of them arched back. "Tazuna, you're in no position to be giving orders. Now, let's go," said Zetsu. Sasuke and Sakura pressed their ears to the door again to listen.

"Let Inari go first!" shouted Tazuna.

"Like I said, you're not in a position to give orders. Now come!" yelled Zetsu

The plant like person pulled Tazuna, but he had his hand on the door knob. When Zetsu pulled, Tazuna turned the knob, and out flew Sasuke and Sakura, both uttering a cry of surprise.

"So, you've been listening. I knew we should have gotten rid of you brats. Konan's just too soft hearted. Don't expect the same treatment from me," said Zetsu. On cue, Zetsu's Pokemon advanced towards Sasuke and Sakura.

Leafeon lunged for Sakura, but Sasuke threw himself in the way of the attack. Sakura's eyes were shut tight, but when she opened them again, she saw Sasuke, wounded, in front of her. The pinkette immediately knew that Leafeon had used Take Down on Sasuke. She also figured out that the attack was meant for her, but Sasuke had thrown himself in the way to shield her.

When Leafeon turned to face Sakura, the pinketted gulped and thought, _"We're done for. Goodbye, my short life as a coordinator."_

As Leafeon rushed, full speed, towards Sakura, a water based attack blew the leaf Pokemon back. Sakura swiftly turned her head to see Naruto, untied, with Marshtomp beside him.

"Naruto! How'd you get free?" asked Sakura, immediately relieved.

Marshtomp jumped in front of Sasuke and Sakura while Naruto untied Sakura. "I'm not that useless, Sakura-chan. Even I can get Marshtomp's Pokeball out with my hands tied behind my back," answered Naruto. Naruto then went on to untying Sasuke.

"Sasuke-kun, are you ok?" asked Sakura. Naruto helped Sasuke stand up.

"Yeah, I'm ok. I can't believe I'm saying this but, thanks Naruto. You really helped a lot," said Sasuke. Naruto grinned his foxy grin.

"Alright, now let's fight this bastard!" said Naruto excitedly. He took out two other Pokeballs and called out his Pokemon. "Come out, Vulpix, Staravia!" The red fox and the newly evolved bird Pokemon came out of the Pokeballs, ready to fight.

"Wow, Starly evolved! Nice work, Naruto," praised Sakura. "Now, take the stage, Combusken, Skitty, Eevee!" He three contest Pokemon got in a battle stance immediately after they were released.

"Let's go, Grovyle, Houndour, Sneasel," said Sasuke. Before the Pokemon could attack, Zetsu was already running towards a submarine. He called back his Pokemon and jumped in the submarine. In a flash, the submarine had submerged.

"Hey, you coward, get back here!" shouted Naruto, clearly pissed. He kept fuming, "Aagh! That cowardly bastard! We didn't even get to fight! That's no fun! Ow, Sasuke-teme, what was that for?!" Sasuke had punched the side of Naruto's head.

"Hn, you're too annoying blockhead. Shut it," replied Sasuke coolly. The trio returned their Pokemon to their Pokeballs and helped up Tazuna and Inari.

"Thanks kids. I owe you one," said Tazuna.

"Actually, we're returning the favor. We needed the ride to Slateport first," said Naruto.

"Hurry, guys. I need to get ready for the contest! It's tomorrow, remember?" said Sakura, panicking again.

"Sakura-chan, calm down! Don't worry, we'll help again, as I said. Let's get out of here!" said Naruto. All of them exited the shipyard.

Once outside, Inari spoke, "Sakura, do you remember who the M.C for the contests are?"

"Yeah, Tsunami. Why?" asked Sakura.

"She's my mom," replied Inari.

"S-Seriously? Nice! Hey, Inari, you're gonna come and watch the contest tomorrow, right? Your mom's gonna be there anyway," said Sakura.

"I am gonna watch. My grandpa is too," answered Inari.

Sakura smiled and patted his head. "Don't forget to root for me, ok Inari?" Turning to Naruto and Sasuke, she said, "We're gonna have to start preparing now. Let's find a free patch of land." Turning back to Inari, Sakura asked, "Do you want to watch us train?"

Inari replied, "Nah. I have to go with my grandpa. He has some work to do. Thanks for inviting me anyway, Sakura. It was nice meeting you three! See ya tomorrow!" Inari ran off with Tazuna afterwards.

"Alright, guys. If I'm gonna win this contest, I'm gonna have to work my butt off. I can already tell it's gonna be really hard. So, let's start!" Sakura ran, full speed out to a random place. Her teammates had to catch up to her. When they caught up, she already had her Pokemon out.

"Sakura-chan, who are you planning to put in the first and second rounds?" asked Naruto.

"Hm, I was thinking I could put in Eevee for the first round, and since Combusken is a really strong fighter, he's going in the second round. I'm leaving Skitty out for this one. Sorry, Skitty," apologized Sakura. The cat-like Pokemon just rubbed its body against Sakura's legs.

"Ok! Sakura-chan, you'll have to show us your appeal first," said Naruto.

"Fine by me," answered Sakura.

Sasuke and Naruto helped Sakura prepare for the contest the whole day. Sakura still didn't want to go back yet, even though it was already ten at night. Just to make her happy, the boys stayed with her until midnight. Only then, did she admit that she was tired and that she wanted to rest. When they got back to the Pokemon Center, Sakura and Naruto immediately plopped down on their beds and went to sleep.

The next day, Sakura and Naruto slept until nine in the morning. Sasuke had woken up early and was training by himself on the outskirts of town. Sasuke informed Sakura that her contest would be at three, so she didn't need to rush.

The trio arrived at the contest hall at 2:30 just because Sakura wanted to get there early. She looked around and saw all kinds of different, cute, and powerful Pokemon. One Pokemon that immediately caught her eye was a graceful, beautiful Glaceon.

"Hey, guys, look at that Glaceon," Sakura whispered in awe.

"Wow, that Glaceon is pretty," commented Naruto.

"I wonder who she belongs to," wondered Sakura. She was just about to find out who the owner was, when someone she had seen before appeared and picked up Glaceon: a young woman with short, blue hair, which was adorned with a beautiful flower.

Sakura's jaw dropped and Sasuke froze. Naruto looked at both of them, confused. The blond tugged on Sakura's shirt sleeve and asked, "Sakura-chan who's she? Do you know her? Have you faced off with her before?"

Sakura nodded slowly. "I already fought her on the abandoned ship, Naruto."

Naruto's eyes widened and he whispered, "You don't mean that … that she's…"

Sakura nodded again and replied, "Yeah, she's one of them. The people Sasuke-kun and I had to fight. Her name's Konan if I remember correctly."

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**Gasp! Sakura has to face off with Konan at this contest! This is not going to turn out pretty. Merry Christmas guys! (I finished writing this chapter on Christmas Eve, but I'm at the beach right now, so I have no Internet, so I can't upload this chapter at this moment.) I would really appreciate it if you guys review! I appreciate the favorites and alerts too, but I just love your reviews! They make me want to write more and update , and if you guys see any mistakes in my fic, just tell me through a review or PM me. I always check my mail. ^_^  
**

**I said it's Christmas Eve, but I uploaded this chapter on January 1, 2010, so Happy New Year too, guys! I hope you all had a great year! Now, it's time to think of new resolutions and start fresh! I hope you all will have a great new year too! **

**Oh, and if you guys have some more time, can you **_**please**_ **check out my other main story, "My Girl's Ex-Boyfriend"? The main character is, again, Sakura. It's kinda a SasuSakuIta fic. I really hope you guys will check it out and tell me what you think in reviews! Thanks! **


	14. Show Your Talents, Glaceon

**All right, here's the next chapter for you guys! I finished writing this chapter at the beach, but now that I have uploaded it, I'm no longer at the beach! Anyway, please review after reading, and enjoy this chapter! **

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****Show Your Talents, Glaceon **

"K-Konan? What's she doing here? Please don't tell me she's in this contest," whimpered Sakura.

"Judging from the way her Glaceon looks, Sakura-chan, I'm guessing she is," said Naruto.

"I don't stand a chance against her! Her Glaceon's super strong! She'll slaughter me in this contest! Not to mention she probably remembers me and will literally kill me afterwards," whispered Sakura.

"Sakura-chan, you'd better go. Just have a positive attitude! We'll be cheering for you!" said Naruto.

"Ok, thanks. See ya." Sakura ran off to the coordinators' lounge while Naruto and Sasuke went to find some free seats.

With the coordinators

"_I'm dead. I am so literally dead in this contest,"_ complained Sakura.

Sakura heard footsteps approaching her. She turned to see Konan. The pinkette froze for a while. Konan held out her hand and said, "It would be a pleasure to go up against you in this contest."

Sakura was surprised first, then shook Konan's hand blurting out, "Yeah, you too, though I know I won't stand a chance against you." She quickly retreated her hand and ran off in another direction. Konan stood there, staring after her. The blue haired woman smirked and turned away.

"_This should be fun. I can see that the girl holds a lot of talent. She's just not confident enough yet,"_ Konan thought.

"All right, people, are you all ready for our contest?" yelled Tsunami. She was answered by a wave of cheers, yells, and claps.

"You go, Mom!" yelled Inari from his seat. Like they said, Tazuna and Inari were at the contest. They sat with Sasuke and Naruto, who had great seats.

"Okay! Here, we have a group of talented coordinators who're ready to showcase their talents! So, come on up, our first entry!" announced Tsunami.

Konan calmly walked to the center of the stage and took out her Pokeball. "Glaceon, go," she whispered, throwing the Pokeball into the air. Glaceon came out of the Pokeball, first, curled up, then she did a somersault in the air, and landed gracefully on stage.

"A beautiful entrance by Glaceon!" commented Tsunami.

"Glaceon, use Ice Beam," commanded Konan. In a matter of seconds, Glaceon had turned the whole stage into an ice rink. (AN: Just like Brianna's Surskit did in her contest with May.) Without any further command from Konan, Glaceon had created four pillars of ice using her Ice Beam attack. Then, she gracefully jumped on top of one pillar, then leaped to each of the other three. At the same time, she was using her Ice Beam attack to make an arc of ice in the air. Finally, she jumped high, and crushed the ice arc with her tail. Glaceon did flips in the air as she fell back down, and destroyed the ice pillars one by one with her tail. She landed elegantly on the ice, with shards of ice falling around her.

"Wow, that's really beautiful! Let's see what our judges think," said Tsunami.

"Glaceon has been trained really well. She didn't even need more than one command from her trainer. This is one well trained Pokemon!" commented Anko.

"Glaceon's talents are outstanding. This is one beautiful appeal," said Tsunade.

"That was just beautiful! Glaceon look gorgeous as well!" squealed Shizune.

"Well, ladies and gentlemen, you heard our judges. So let's bring out our next entry!" shouted Tsunami.

"Crap, that's one strong Glaceon," commented Naruto, as the second contestant was performing his appeal. "Sakura-chan, she… can she even beat that Glaceon?"

"Dobe this is the first time you've doubted Sakura. Usually you would be screaming about how she'll win," said Sasuke.

"Yeah, but, that Glaceon! Sakura-chan's gone up against that girl, Konan, hasn't she?" said Naruto.

"Don't worry, Naruto, just stay positive, just like you always are," urged Inari.

"Yeah, but…" Naruto trailed off as he turned his attention back to the stage.

"Now, ladies and gentlemen, let's bring out our next entry!" announced Tsunami.

"All right, Eevee, take the stage!" shouted Sakura. Eevee did some back flips cutely when she came out, and finished with a handstand.

"That's such a cute entrance!" commented Tsunami.

"Eevee, use Double Team," commanded Sakura.

Eevee made only two more copies of itself. She braced herself for Sakura's next command. "Now, use Shadow Ball!"

All three Eevees created a dark, pulsing ball just above their noses, and started juggling them between the three Eevees. Since Shadow Ball was a newly acquired skill for Eevee, she had a little trouble stabilizing the ball of energy. First, the Eevees slapped the Shadow Balls in a circle, to each other, with their tails. Then, once all three balls were in the air, the Eevees jumped in perfect synch, and balanced the balls on their noses, like seals. When they landed, all three Eevees stood on one paw and kept balancing the balls.

"Isn't that a cute display?" cooed Tsunami.

"A very cute show of Eevee's moves! They go together pretty well!" praised Nurse Shizune.

"Wow, that little critter can handle those Shadow Balls really well. It's usually hard to balance Shadow Balls like that," commented Anko.

"It looks like Eevee learned Shadow Ball just recently. However, Eevee is very skilled in balancing them. I'd say this is a great appeal!" said Tsunade.

"Now, for the finale, Eevee! Combine!" shouted Sakura.

The Eevees used their tails to slap the Shadow Balls in the air and gather them to make one Shadow Ball. The three Eevees ran towards each other, and the fake Eevees vanished when the real Eevee ran into them. As the Shadow Ball came down, Eevee positioned herself so that the Shadow Ball would come into contact with her tail. She balanced herself on two paws and started to spin rapidly. As the Shadow Ball hit her tail, it burst into small particles, showering Eevee and Sakura.

"What a grand finale! Give a hand for Sakura and her Eevee! Now, let's bring out our next contestant," announced Tsunami.

"Woah, isn't Sakura-chan cool?" breathed Naruto.

"She sure is. That was one great appeal!" said Inari.

"Hn, that girl, Konan's appeal was more professional, though," said Sasuke.

"Gee, thanks for ruining the mood Sasuke-teme," mumbled Naruto.

Back at the coordinators' lounge, Sakura saw Konan leaning her back against the doorway. She predicted that Konan was waiting for her.

Just like Sakura thought, Konan walked up to her and said, "You have a great Eevee. I admire its talents as a Pokemon, and yours as a coordinator."

Sakura blushed at the praise and replied, "Your Glaceon's appeal was much better than mine. I swear, I thought you might be a first class coordinator."

Konan smiled and said, "Thank you. I'm not a first class coordinator, however."

"_Hold up, why am I talking to her like we're old time friends? We fought on the abandoned ship! She's the enemy! She's working for an organization!"_ Sakura yelled in her head.

"_**Just go with the flow, girl. Go with the flow,"**_ suggested Inner Sakura.

"I cannot wait to face off with you in the second round. I'm very confident that you will make it," said Konan.

"Uh, me neither?" said Sakura, unsure of her answer.

"Until then, Sakura," said Konan. She walked back into the coordinators' lounge to watch the rest of the appeals.

"_How did she know my name?"_ Sakura asked herself.

"_**Tsunami said your name out there, hello?"**_ said Inner Sakura.

"_Just consider me dead in the second round,"_ mumbled Sakura to Inner Sakura.

"_**Come on! Stay optimistic! We'll get through this! Shannaro!" **_supported Inner Sakura.

"All right, all entries are now finished! The judges have decided that these eight coordinators on the screen will move on to the second round!" announced Tsunami. Konan, of course, made it to the final round, and, as she predicted, Sakura did too.

"_**Hey, at least we made it to the second round,"**_ said Inner Sakura.

"Sakura-chan made it to the second round! Go Sakura-chan!" cheered Naruto.

It turned out that Sakura had to fight and defeat two other people before she had to face Konan, who she knows, will beat the two other people she has to face. Sakura and another coordinator were up first.

In the second round, Sakura used Combusken, just like she said. She easily defeated her opponent with her fighting and fire type Pokemon. Konan was in the second match. Like Sakura predicted, Konan defeated her opponent with ease, knocking out his Pokemon in just one minute.

"_Oh God, she's too good,"_ thought Sakura as she watched Konan defeat her opponent.

Both Sakura and Konan defeated their next challenger, and soon enough, they were in the final match, facing off against each other. "Now, brace yourselves for the final match, ladies and gentlemen! It's a Combusken versus Glaceon match! We have five minutes on the clock so let's get started!" announced Tsunami.

"Combusken, take the stage!" shouted Sakura.

"Show your talents, Glaceon," said Konan.

Before Sakura and Konan gave their commands, Combusken and Glaceon had a little glaring contest of their own, since they remembered each other from their previous fight.

"Combusken, Ember!" shouted Sakura.

"Glaceon, dodge, then use Icy Wind," commanded Konan.

Combusken breathed fire towards Glaceon, but it quickly moved out of the way and blew out its Icy Wind, which froze Combusken's Ember attack and hit Combusken. The wind blew Combusken back, but the fire type Pokemon tried to stand its ground.

"Ouch, that's going to cost Sakura points," said Tsunami.

"Combusken, use Double Kick," commanded Sakura.

Combusken quickly disappeared and reappeared behind Glaceon, with its feet glowing. Then, he quickly kicked Glaceon twice, making the ice Pokemon slide back. Konan lost a few points for taking that attack. However, Glaceon quickly got back up, and, without any command from Konan, used Double Team. The clones surrounded Combusken. The tails of all the Glaceons glowed. Then, all the Glaceons jumped in the air, did a couple of flips, and all of them hit Combusken with an Iron Tail attack. Sakura lost some more points.

"Woah, that Glaceon can really make its moves seem graceful," commented Naruto.

"I have to say, that lady's got a well trained Glaceon," said Tazuna. "Sakura got a nice Combusken herself, but even with the type advantage, I'd say the gap between their powers is like heaven and earth."

"Aw, come on. Don't underestimate Sakura-chan that much. She's really determined, though," retorted Naruto.

"Her determination's not gonna get her far in this match. It all comes down to experience," said Tazuna.

"No! Hard work and determination also counts! How can anyone improve without those qualities?" shouted Naruto, standing up.

"Dobe, shut up. You're going to attract attention," said Sasuke, forcing Naruto back down.

Naruto shut up and sulked in his seat. His eyes were filled with hope; hope for Sakura. _"Sakura-chan, come on, you can handle it. Don't lose!"_ Naruto cheered in his head.

"Use Shadow Ball, Glaceon," commanded Konan.

Glaceon and her clones created Shadow Balls, much like Sakura's Eevee did, only more powerful; much more powerful. Before Glaceon could launch the balls towards Combusken, the fire type Pokemon used its strong legs to jump, high, into the air. At that point, the Glaceons released their Shadow Ball attacks.

"Uh-oh, Combusken's in trouble," commented Tsunami.

"Combusken, Fire Spin!" shouted Sakura.

Combusken blew out a large column of fire, which collided with some Shadow Balls. However, a few others didn't crash towards the fire. Instead, those balls of energy made their ways toward Combusken. They hit Combusken and made the Pokemon fall, headfirst, to the stage. As a result, Sakura lost a lot more points.

Combusken quickly rebounded and waited for Sakura's next command. "Flamethrower, now!" Using that powerful fire attack, Combusken finally got rid of the Glaceon clones. In the process of eliminating the clones, the flamethrower attack hit the real Glaceon as well, which took some points from Konan.

"Only one minute left, ladies and gentlemen, and it doesn't look too good for Sakura," said Tsunami.

"Combusken use Double Kick again!" commanded Sakura.

"Glaceon," was all Konan said.

As Combusken was rearing up to use its attack, Glaceon sprung into the air and froze the whole stage. As a result, Combusken stopped in mid-attack, and starting slipping on the ice. Sakura lost a few more points for clumsiness. Then, Glaceon blew a very strong Icy Wind attack towards Combusken; the same attack that froze the fire type Pokemon back on the abandoned ship. The same thing happened in this match: Combusken was frozen.

"Finish it, Glaceon," commanded Konan.

"No! Combusken!" shouted Sakura.

Glaceon's tail glowed white, and it rushed towards Combusken, leaving a trail of white light behind it. In one slash, Glaceon hit Combusken. The ice around Combusken shattered, and the fire type Pokemon fell, knocked out.

"That was a mixture of Glaceon's Quick Attack and Iron Tail. It's very effective in battles and contests," explained Konan.

Tsunami shouted, "Wasn't that a great battle? Ladies and gentlemen, we have our winners!" The crowd went wild and cheered their butts off.

Sakura ran to Combusken and tried to heal him as much as she could. All of a sudden, she saw her own tears spilling on Combusken's face. Sakura didn't even notice that she was crying until she saw her own tears. Konan looked at Sakura and walked towards her. Sakura heard her footsteps and quickly wiped her eyes.

"You put up a great fight. You could become a first class coordinator someday, Sakura," said Konan.

"T-Thanks. I already knew that I didn't stand a chance against you," sniffled Sakura, trying not to let the tears well up.

"It's okay to cry. Crying releases all those feelings you have cooped up inside you," suggested Konan.

Just after Konan said that, Sakura started to sniffle, and bawl. Konan kneeled down in front of her and hugged the pinkette like she was her own daughter. Sakura cried on Konan's shoulders, right on stage.

"Sakura-chan's really upset about this," mumbled Naruto.

"Poor Sakura," said Inari, shaking his head slowly.

"Sakura…" whispered Sasuke, his expression showing concern for his pink haired teammate.

When Sakura had completely finished crying, she smiled at Konan, her tears still glistening on her cheeks. "Thank you, Konan. You were right about crying. I feel much better." Konan said nothing. She just smiled sweetly back at Sakura. Konan got up and picked up her Glaceon. She nodded at Sakura, then went to the middle of the stage to receive her ribbon.

"You have shown us an outstanding performance, and you deserve the Slateport ribbon! Thank you, Tsunade for making the presentation," said Tsunami.

"_**Would you look at that. Konan's not that bad after all,"**_ said Inner Sakura.

"_Yeah. She's actually pretty nice. We just didn't get along that well when we first met,"_ replied Sakura, mentally.

"_**You two were literally at each others' throats on the abandoned ship," **_snorted Inner Sakura.

"_It looks like our passion for contests drew us closer,"_ said Sakura.

"_**Maybe. She is a really nice person though. I wonder what the name of the organization she works for is called,"**_ wondered Inner Sakura.

"_No clue. We'll need to know someday, though,"_ replied Sakura.

Once Sakura was out of the contest hall, she was tackled by Naruto in a hug. "What the--, Naruto, get off me!" shouted Sakura, trying to shake off Naruto.

"Sakura-chan, you okay?" asked Naruto, deeply anxious.

Sakura saw the concern in Naruto's eyes. She softened and answered, "Yeah, I'm okay. Don't worry about me."

"B-But, you were crying your eyes out!" yelled Naruto.

"Dobe, when she says she's okay, she's okay. Now shut up," said Sasuke, annoyed.

"You shut up, teme. Why don't you care about Sakura-chan?" asked Naruto.

"I **do** care about her you idiotic dobe!" retorted Sasuke.

Naruto, Sasuke, Inari, and even Tazuna were shocked at Sasuke yelling. "Sasuke-kun, you…" Sakura started to say.

"Never mind. Let's just go," said Sasuke, quickly turning around so that no one would see his face.

"Ha ha! Teme's blushing!" joked Naruto.

Sasuke didn't let Naruto's little comment stop him from walking. Naruto and Sakura quickly said their good-byes to Inari and Tazuna, and followed Sasuke.

"Hey, Sasuke-teme, would you calm down? Can't you take a joke?" asked Naruto slyly.

"Shut it, dobe," said Sasuke through gritted teeth.

"Sasuke-kun, where are we heading next?" asked Sakura.

"To Mauville. That's where the next gym is. However, we still have to pass through Route 110 before we can get there," explained Sasuke.

Sakura messed around with her Poketch and said, "Hey, there's a cycling route, but you need a bicycle to go on that route. It would've been much quicker."

"No problem! We don't need the cycling route! We'll just walk there, like we always do, Dattebayo!" urged Naruto.

"Speaking of Mauville, isn't Kakashi-sensei the gym leader there?" asked Sakura.

"Oh yeah! He is! Ha ha! I can't wait to show him how much stronger we've all gotten!" boasted Naruto. "Well, what are we waiting for, let's go!" Before anyone knew it, the hyper blond was already tearing down the route.

"Geez, he's as hyper as ever," said Sakura.

"Let's go before he gets lost again," murmured Sasuke.

Sakura sighed and commented, "He has a PokeNavi, and he doesn't even use it. What's the point of it?" Suddenly, Sakura's eyes widened. She had completely forgotten about Sarutobi's request! Sakura started to panic, but she quickly calmed down, not wanting Sasuke to think that she was going crazy.

"_I don't know if Sasuke-kun will know, but, it's worth a shot," _thought Sakura.

"Um, hey, Sasuke-kun," started Sakura.

"Hn, what?" replied the stoic Uchiha.

"Uh, well, this is out of the blue, but … do you know, or have you seen a person named Jiraiya?" asked Sakura, taking a chance.

"Yeah," answered Sasuke.

Sakura gaped. "Y-You know him?"

"I've seen him," said Sasuke.

"When? Where?" asked Sakura.

"Back at the Granite Cave. He helped me and Naruto train," answered Sasuke.

"_Huh? But I watched them train too, and I never saw that guy,"_ thought Sakura.

"_**We were only there for a while, remember?"**_ said Inner Sakura.

"D-Do you know where he is now?" asked Sakura.

"Before he left, he did say that he was heading to Mosdeep. Why are you so curious, Sakura?" this time it was Sasuke's turn to ask.

"Oh, no reason, it's nothing, Sasuke-kun," replied Sakura.

"_Mosdeep??!! Now I'll never get that letter to him! No, I can't give up just yet! I don't want to let Sarutobi-sempai down. Come on, Sakura, you can do it, girl!"_ Sakura urged herself.

"Sakura, like I said, we'd better go before we lose Naruto, **again**," said Sasuke, stressing the "again" part.

"Yeah, let's go, Sasuke-kun," replied Sakura. The two of them ran off towards Naruto.

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**Yeah, this chapter's finished! What did you think about the contest? Too bad Sakura lost. She can't stand a chance against Konan! Konan's too experienced. Team 7 will keep getting stronger, no matter what! If you guys have questions, or see something wrong in my story, please send these comments in reviews. I really appreciate them. ^_^ So, please review! (I've finished this chapter, and I'm still at the beach! This is my last day though. However, like I said, since I have no Internet at the beach, by the time I upload my chapters, I'll not be at the beach anymore… sniff. I will be glad to get my Internet back though.) **

**I said this in the last chapter, but, if you guys have time, please check out my second main story, "My Girl's Ex-Boyfriend". Please send me your thoughts, questions, comments, in reviews! In that fic, if you guys see something wrong in my story, or you're just confused about something, please tell me in a review! Thank you! **


	15. New Mauville And A Cherubi

**Oh yeah, a new chapter! A new chapter, and this story has a hundred reviews now! Yayz! Thank you, reviewers, for reviewing my story! Cookies to all of you! Here's the next chapter. Enjoy! **

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**New Mauville and a Cherubi**

"We aren't lost, are we?" asked Naruto, scratching his head.

Sakura sighed and answered, "For the hundredth time, Naruto, no we're not. It's just a long walk to Mauville. If only all three of us had bikes. We could've gone on the cycling route." The pinkette sighed again as she kept her eyes on her Poketch.

"Why does Mauville have to be so far off?" complained Naruto.

"Can you not stop complaining?" asked Sasuke.

Naruto glared at Sasuke and said, "Unfortunately for you, no, teme. So you're stuck with my complaining." The blond boy then stuck out his tongue at the young Uchiha.

"You two bickering is just driving me nuts," cut in Sakura, who was still intently concentrating on her Poketch.

Sasuke and Naruto stopped bickering and the trio continued to walk in peace for a while. Suddenly, Naruto spotted a huge blimp floating over their heads. He yelled, "Hey, hey, Sakura-chan, Sasuke-teme, look up!"

Sasuke slowly faced up and Sakura peeled her eyes off her Poketch screen to look at the blimp. Her eyes widened when she saw what the huge banner trailing behind it read.

_**Annual Escargot Cup Contest in Mauville City on March 4**__**th**__**. All coordinators with a contest pass accepted! Don't miss it! **_

"Sakura-chan," started Naruto. The pinkette was still staring at the sky, stiff as a board. Naruto inched closer to her and waved a hand in her face; still no movement. A couple of seconds later the girl finally mumbled something.

"What was that, Sakura-chan?" asked Naruto.

"I **have** to get to Mauville City, fast!" repeated Sakura, emphasizing the "have". She messed around with her Poketch to see what the date was. The pinkette sighed, obviously relieved.

"How many days do you think it'll take to get to Mauville City?" asked Naruto.

"About two days, but since we've already been on the road for one day, it might take another day to reach the city," answered Sasuke.

"That's perfect! There're still four more days before the contest there, so we have plenty of time to get there, and I have plenty of time to practice," said Sakura enthusiastically.

"Glad to see you're not nervous about this contest," said Sasuke.

"I'm actually really excited. I lost my last contest, but I have a great feeling about this one! I won my first ribbon because I worked hard and trusted my Pokemon. I'll give it my all on this contest as well! You two are going to challenge Kakashi-sensei anyway, so we'll kill two birds with one stone. You two can help me train, and I'll help you in return," suggested Sakura.

"That's what we've always been doing," reminded Sasuke.

"We'll keep on doing it until the very end because we're a team!" said Naruto.

"We'd better get going. I can't wait to reach Mauville City!" squealed Sakura.

"Then what're we waiting for? Let's get going!" shouted Naruto, suddenly rushing off. Sakura ran off as well, leaving Sasuke alone. The Uchiha sighed and ran towards his teammates.

The trio kept running and running. It seemed like there was no stop to them. Naruto was in the lead, with Sakura close behind. The only un-enthusiastic one was the dark haired Uchiha. Suddenly, Sakura and Sasuke heard Naruto's surprised yelp and the sound of hinges swinging. Sakura and Sasuke sped up and looked around for Naruto, but he was nowhere to be found.

"What did he do now?" Sakura asked.

"Knowing that idiot, he probably fell in some…" before Sasuke could finish his sentence, he heard Sakura utter a surprised yelp as well. Sasuke spotted her falling into a huge hole, which was cleverly hidden by a grassy door. The Uchiha grabbed her hand before she fell into the dark abyss below. He struggled to pull her back up.

"Hey, Sakura-chan, Sasuke-teme!" a voice called out.

"Naruto?" asked Sakura. Once Sasuke pulled Sakura back up, she punched the patch of grass, which was the doorway to the huge hole. The door swung open, and out flew Naruto, with his Staravia.

"At least you figured out how to get back up," said Sasuke, emotionlessly.

"I may look stupid, but I'm not that stupid," retorted Naruto, returning his Staravia to its Pokeball.

"What do you think is down there?" asked Sakura.

"I have no clue. It was too dark. I couldn't see a thing," answered Naruto.

A new voice interrupted their conversation. "Well, I see you three have found New Mauville." The trio turned around to face none other than Kakashi Hatake.

"Kakashi-sensei…" started Sakura.

"You want to know what New Mauville is, right?" asked Kakashi. Sakura and Naruto nodded while Sasuke just stared, uninterested.

"New Mauville is an underground city built by the ancestors of the people of Mauville City. It was used as a safe haven during times of war. However, now, we don't know what it's like," explained Kakashi.

"Interesting…" Naruto mumbled.

"Kakashi-sensei, do you mind if we look around down there?" asked Sakura.

"I don't mind. Just explore safely. Don't get yourselves killed by the wild Pokemon down there," said Kakashi. He disappeared as fast as he appeared.

"When it comes to leaving us hanging, Kakashi-sensei's the master," said Naruto.

Sakura punched the doorway open again. "Well, let's go guys!" Sakura said enthusiastically.

Naruto nodded and called out his Staravia again. "I'll send Staravia up again for you guys," said Naruto. He and his Staravia descended into the black abyss again. A few moments later, Staravia flew back up and descended with Sakura. The third time it came back, it tried to get Sasuke to go with it, but the stubborn Uchiha refused. Frustrated, the bird started to peck Sasuke. Extremely annoyed, Sasuke agreed to go to New Mauville.

It was pitch black in New Mauville. "Combusken, use your fire to light up this place," commanded Sakura as she called out Combusken. With Combusken's fire, the whole place lit up immediately, and the three of them gasped at the sight before them. New Mauville was an old, run-down amusement park!

"Interesting. I never expected New Mauville would be an amusement park," inquired a different voice.

Sakura and Naruto uttered surprised yelps and jumped back. Sasuke stayed put and said, "If you were coming down here, why did you leave in the first place?"

"Well, I had my own business. I have to help with the preparations for the huge contest in Mauville City," answered Kakashi. Suddenly, they heard some mechanical beeping sounds.

"What was that?" asked Naruto, alerted.

"Turn and see for yourself," replied Kakashi, pointing to a gigantic robot with many arms.

"Run for it?" asked Naruto.

"You bet," replied Kakashi calmly. The four of them started running away from the robot. No matter how far they ran, the robot still kept chasing them.

"Kakashi-sensei, why don't you use your Pokemon to stop it?" yelled Sakura.

"I'm pretty sure this robot was designed to suck the energy out of electric types. There are only electric type wild Pokemon in New Mauville after all," replied Kakashi.

"Tch, Houndour, come out!" said Sasuke, throwing Houndour's Pokeball. The hound-like Pokemon landed right in front of the huge robot. "Use flamethrower," commanded Sasuke.

Houndour blew out a huge column of fire towards the robot. "Nice thinking, Sasuke-kun. Fire will definitely have some kind of impact on metal. Naruto use your Vulpix to help out. Combusken, come on stage!" yelled Sakura.

Combusken and Vulpix joined Houndour in blowing out powerful flamethrower attacks. The robot was affected by the flames, but it still kept advancing towards the four of them. Kakashi remained in deep thought for a while. Then, he ran straight towards the robot.

"Kakashi-sensei, what're you doing?" shouted Naruto.

"Naruto, lend me your Staravia for a while," called Kakashi.

"For what?!" Naruto yelled.

"Just lend me Staravia!" shouted Kakashi.

"Fine… Staravia, go to him," commanded Naruto.

The bird Pokemon flew towards Kakashi. The silver haired gym leader then clung onto Staravia and flew up. Combusken, Houndour, and Vulpix still didn't stop their attacks. Once Kakashi reached the head of the robot, he landed and started searching for something.

"Kakashi-sensei, what are you doing?" Naruto asked again.

"I'm looking for a switch that might deactivate this mechanism," replied Kakashi.

"Be careful, Kakashi-sensei! You may fall!" warned Sakura.

"I won't, trust me. I've done much more dangerous actions than this," reassured Kakashi. Finally, after moments of searching, Kakashi located a slab of metal that was loose. He pried it open and started flicking the switches in there. Just when the robot was about to crush Combusken, Vulpix, and Houndour, it stopped in its tracks.

"That was close," mumbled Sakura.

"Too close," said Sasuke.

"Well, now that that's done, you three better go up," said Kakashi.

"How will you get back up, Kakashi?" asked Sasuke.

"I'll find a way. Besides, you all want time to train and stuff don't you?" asked Kakashi.

"Oh, the contest! I need to get ready for it!" Sakura reminded herself.

"Don't worry, Sakura. There's still some time left before the contest. Relax, play, and have fun with your Pokemon. If you train all the time, it won't help as much," advised Kakashi. He turned to the boys and continued, "The same goes with you two. Playing with your Pokemon strengthens the bonds you have with each other. It helps a lot in gym battles."

"I'll keep that in mind. Thanks!" said Naruto.

"I wonder if I can get New Mauville to work again. The kids of Mauville City will really love this amusement park," commented Kakashi.

"Do you plan on doing that alone?" asked Sakura.

"I can manage. After all, I **am** the gym leader of Mauville City," said Kakashi, winking. "You three better get back up and continue to Mauville City. Sakura, good luck to you if you're planning to enter the contest. As for you two," Kakashi paused and looked at Naruto and Sasuke intently. "Remember to play and train with your Pokemon. You're going to go up against me after all."

"Thanks Kakashi-sensei," said Sakura.

"Heh, we'll keep that in mind," uttered Sasuke.

"We'll beat you and earn that Dynamo Badge too! Dattebayo!" yelled Naruto.

"Alright, alright. Now, up you go," shooed Kakashi.

Naruto used Staravia to transport all three of them back up. Naruto and Sakura immediately took off once they were back on land. The two of them just don't seem to run out of excitement. Naruto was so excited to get to Mauville City that he didn't even return his Staravia to his Pokeball. Sakura would have been much better off climbing on her Combusken and letting it run to Mauville City, but Combusken was a little small for Sakura to climb on.

Naruto and Sakura ran out of breath at one point, allowing Sasuke to catch up. "Sheesh, what took you so long, teme?" taunted Naruto.

"Unlike you I am not that anxious to reach Mauville City, dobe," replied Sasuke. At that moment, Naruto's Staravia flew off somewhere.

"Hey, Staravia, where're you going?" shouted Naruto. It turns out that Staravia was pecking at berries on a nearby tree. Once a berry fell, Staravia prepared to pick it up, but it was greeted by a surprise attack. That berry tackled Staravia!

"Staravia! You okay?" asked Naruto, concerned. The blond boy scooped up his Staravia and returned it to its Pokeball. Then, he stared at the berry in awe. "That must be a rare berry that can attack predators!" declared Naruto.

Sakura slapped her forehead and said, "No, you idiot, it's a Cherubi." The pinkette then switched her tone and said sweetly, "And it's so cute!" She activated her Pokedex to learn more about the Cherubi.

**Cherubi, the Cherry Pokemon. All of the nutrients needed for ****evolution**** are contained in its small ball. Cherubi becomes redder as it is exposed to sunlight, and is almost ready to evolve once the smaller ball buds.**

"I'm going to catch this little guy!" declared Sakura. She took out a Pokeball and yelled, "Okay Eevee, you're on stage!" The Pokeball opened and released Sakura's newly obtained Eevee.

"Sakura-chan, are you gonna use those stones?" asked Naruto.

"I'm curious as to how powerful Eevee can be, but I'm a bit scared. I don't want to hurt Eevee," mumbled Sakura.

"Vui, vui!" said Eevee.

"I think it's trying to say that it's okay to use them, Sakura-chan!" encouraged Naruto.

"But…" Sakura started.

"Sakura-chan, I'm positive it's okay. Sure, Eevee looked like it was in pain when that Karin girl used the stones on it, but with you, Sakura-chan, I think it doesn't mind," said Naruto.

"Well, haven't you learned quite a lot," commented Sakura. She sighed and said, "Well, alright. They say curiosity killed the cat, but in this case, I can't help it. Okay, Eevee." Sakura swiped out a random stone from her bag and held it out, towards Eevee. At once, the little Pokemon started to glow and grow. It kept glowing, and suddenly, the growing ceased and the glowing subsided. There was now an Espeon instead of Eevee.

"Nice choice, Sakura," complimented Sasuke. "Psychic types work well against grass types." Naruto took out his Pokedex to examine Espeon.

**Espeon, the Sun Pokemon. Espeon is extremely loyal to any ****trainer**** it considers to be worthy. It is said that this Pokémon developed its precognitive powers to protect its trainer from harm.**

"_Cool, the Sun Stone makes Eevee evolve into an Espeon!"_ thought Sakura. _"Alright, let's catch that Cherubi!" _

"Espeon, let's go, use Psybeam!" commanded Sakura. The jewel on Espeon's forehead ejected a stream of light towards Cherubi, hitting it dead on.

However, Cherubi spun out of the Psybeam and unleashed its Magical Leaf attack. The glowing leaves scraped and wounded Espeon, but the psychic Pokemon wouldn't back down.

"Okay Espeon, you're doing fine. Let's try Confusion!" commanded Sakura.

Espeon used its Confusion attack to control Cherubi's movements, which gave Sakura a clear advantage. However, the small cherry Pokemon still had enough of its energy to throw its Leech Seed attack at Espeon. The seeds burrowed into Espeon's fur and started sucking the energy out of it. Espeon's Confusion weakened, and, eventually, the attack was nullified and Cherubi was released from it.

"Ah… Espeon, can you still go on?" asked a concerned Sakura.

"Espe, espe, espe!" replied Espeon. Even though the Leech Seed attack was still sucking the energy out of Espeon, the Pokemon just wouldn't give up.

"All right, I trust you, Espeon. Let's go with Hidden Power," said Sakura. Espeon created small energy balls and used its psychic abilities to hurl them towards Cherubi. Hidden Power hit Cherubi, sending it flying backwards.

"Now's your chance, Sakura-chan! Catch that Cherubi! Dattebayo!" shouted Naruto.

Sakura pulled out an empty Pokeball and kissed it. She shouted, "All right, Pokeball. Don't fail me now. Go!" The Pokeball bounced off Cherubi and ad red light engulfed the Pokemon. The Pokeball swayed once Cherubi was engulfed by the red light. Sakura waited anxiously for the Pokeball to stop moving. Suddenly, the Pokeball opened, and Cherubi broke free.

"Darn it!" cursed Sakura. "Espeon, let's try this again. Use Swift this time." Espeon spat out stars from its mouth towards Cherubi. "Now, use Confusion to control Swift and intensify it!" Espeon's eyes glowed as it used Confusion to control the stars. Now, there was a ring of stars surrounding Cherubi. "Okay, now hit it!" The Swift attack effectively hurt Cherubi. The Swift attack had more power to it because of Confusion.

"Sakura, throw another empty Pokeball, now!" suggested Sasuke.

"Okay. Pokeball, let's go!" shouted Sakura, throwing a second Pokeball at Cherubi. The red light engulfed the Cherry Pokemon again, and the Pokeball started moving.

"Come on, don't let me down now," prayed Sakura. The Pokeball continued to move, then it slowed down, and finally, it stopped moving. Sakura let out a relieved sigh. The pinkette ran to the Pokeball and picked it up. She jumped for joy and declared, "All right! This Cherubi's all mine!"

"This is your fourth Pokemon, right Sakura-chan?" asked Naruto.

"Yeah. I'm sure I'll do great in the contest at Mauville City. Now that I have Cherubi to help me out, I'm sure I'll win my second ribbon," said Sakura, confident of herself.

"You sure will, Sakura-chan. Remember, we'll be rooting for you! Dattebayo!" shouted Naruto.

"Thanks! Well, we'd better get to Mauville City. I have a feeling we're going to have to camp out again," said Sakura.

"I'm prepared for anything!" boasted Naruto.

"You can't even help prepare a meal," commented Sasuke.

"Shut up, teme," said Naruto.

"Stop bickering, guys. The sooner we reach Mauville, the better," interrupted Sakura. It turned out that the trio had to spend the night on the route, as Sakura anticipated. The night flew by quickly for the young travelers. By dawn, they had packed their supplies, and were about to head to Mauville City, which isn't too far away anymore.

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**Yay! I finally updated! I'm so sorry that I haven't updated for so long! This is the time of year in which the workload starts to pile up; really pile up. This chapter may be shorter than the others, but I wrote this in one night, and now it's 11:30 P.M. At least I finished a chapter! Well, I hope you guys enjoyed this. Please review, review, review! Oh, and if you guys find anything wrong with this chapter grammatically, or if these facts didn't match the ones in the previous chapters, please leave me a notification in a review! Thank you! **


	16. The Trick House

**Well, it's been a while since I last updated. I would like to dedicate this chapter to Sakura, since it's her birthday (March 28****th****)! Please review after reading! Enjoy this chapter, and Happy Birthday, Sakura! **

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****The Trick House**

"Hey, look at that," said Naruto, pointing to a large group of people crowded around a crazily painted house.

"I wonder what's going on," said Sakura. "Hey, can we check it out? I'm a teensy bit curious."

"It might slow us down. Mauville City's not too far off now," reminded Sasuke.

"Yeah, but Sasuke-kun, aren't you curious at all?" asked Sakura teasingly.

"Sasuke-teme has no feelings at all, Sakura-chan. I think you should know that by now," teased Naruto. Sasuke just sighed and said nothing.

"I'm going to go see what's up. Come if you want. If you don't, then, wait here, please." Sakura skipped off to the huge crowd to figure out what the commotion was. Naruto tagged along, being the good friend he is.

"Hey, what's this all about?" Naruto asked a girl about their age.

"Oh, don't you know? This is the trick house. The person who're smart enough to figure out all the tricks inside the trick house will be declared the winner, and they will get a year's supply of Pokeblocks," replied the girl. "Are you two planning on entering?"

"We just found out about this place. I think I might enter this trick house competition. It sounds interesting," pondered Sakura.

"If you do that, we'll get to Mauville City even later than planned," said Sasuke, walking up to them.

"Oh, you followed us, Sasuke-kun?" asked Sakura.

"I can't leave you alone with Naruto. He may do something idiotic again," answered Sasuke.

"Hey, wait a second. I feel like I've seen you three before," mumbled the girl. "On TV, um… a… oh right! I saw you," the young girl pointed at Sakura, "at the Rustboro contest. As for you two, I heard that you defeated the Dewford gym leader."

"Yep, that's us! Dattebayo!" cheered Naruto.

"I **was** at the Rustboro contest. My name is Sakura Haruno. What's yours?" Sakura introduced herself.

"My name is TenTen. It's very nice to meet you Sakura," said TenTen, shaking Sakura's hand.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki, and this emotionless guy here is Sasuke Uchiha. It's a pleasure to meet you!" greeted Naruto, shaking hands with TenTen as well. "Are you Chinese? You really look like one," stated Naruto.

"Well, I'm partially Chinese. My dad's Japanese, though," replied TenTen.

"I really like how you tie your hair into two buns. They really show that you're proud to look Chinese. I love the twin dragons on your shirt too. The designs are just… wow… The clothes you wear and your appearance really show off your Chinese heritage," commented Sakura.

"Thank you," said TenTen, blushing a little.

"Oh, hey, how did you know about our battle against the Dewford gym leader?" asked Naruto.

"Lee's one of my close friends. He tells me about the trainers he's faced. He said you and Sasuke worked together really well," answered TenTen.

"Well, not all the time," whispered Sakura.

"Guys, it looks like someone's emerging from beneath the stage," interrupted Sasuke.

"That must be the Trick Master," said TenTen.

"The Trick Master?" asked Naruto.

"He's the one who started this contest. I'm sure he'll explain everything you need to know," replied TenTen.

"Welcome everyone!" started the Trick Master. "I'm your host and creator of the Trick House Contest, the Trick Master! Behold my Trick House! It's full of the trickiest traps I've ever thought of! It will take both wisdom and wit to make it all the way through. Whoever gets past all of my traps and reaches the exit first is the winner! Don't forget the yummy surprise you're going to win: a year's supply of Pokeblocks! So, without further ado, it's trick time!" After his announcement, the Trick Master disappeared under the stage.

"We don't **have** to go in alone, do we?" asked Sakura.

"I don't think so. There's no rule stating that we have to go individually," replied TenTen.

"All right then! Let's go!" shouted Naruto, full of enthusiasm.

"Naruto and Sasuke, since you two work so well together, why don't you go together?" asked TenTen.

"What?! Me, go in that house with Sasuke-teme? No way! Not in a million years!" denied Naruto.

"Oh? From what I've heard from Lee, you two have pretty good teamwork," said TenTen.

"Sheesh… fine… let's just go, teme," said Naruto, defeated.

"Did you do that to purposely test their teamwork and will to work together?" asked Sakura.

"You got that right. Now, let's go too, Sakura," replied TenTen.

With Naruto and Sasuke

"Naruto, will you stop pushing?" complained Sasuke.

"Hey, I can't see a thing here, y'know!" retorted Naruto.

"Why did I ever agree to go with you?" mumbled Sasuke.

"I'm not happy either teme, so shut it!" yelled Naruto. A moment later, the blond crashed into a wall. "Ow… what's this? Hey, it's not dark anymore!"

"It looks like a maze. So, we have to get through this obstacle, huh? Hn, piece of cake," said Sasuke. He opened the first door and went in. Naruto followed the boy.

"Teme, you sure we're going the right way?" asked Naruto.

"Trust me, I know exactly…" Sasuke crashed into a dead end before he could finish his sentence.

"Yeah… you know exactly where you're going," said Naruto sarcastically. He walked off on his own, trying to figure out a path. (AN: I wanted to change it so that for once, it's Sasuke who's the stupid one. XD)

With Sakura and TenTen 

"I'm pretty sure we're lost," commented Sakura. She and TenTen have been circling the maze for what seemed like days.

"Yeah… we've been walking for too long. Hm, I guess I'll have to crash the walls," said TenTen, calmly.

"Isn't that against the rules?" asked Sakura.

"The Trick Master just said we have to go through his obstacles and figure out his tricks. He didn't say anything about **how** we can get through his obstacles," replied TenTen, taking out a Pokeball. "Okay Cloyster, come on out!" The huge oyster-like Pokemon emerged from TenTen's Pokeball, first with is shells closed, but opened them a few seconds later. Sakura pulled out her Pokedex to analyze the Pokemon.

**Cloyster, the Bivalve Pokemon. Cloyster is capable of swimming in the sea. It does so by swallowing water, then jetting it out toward the rear. This Pokemon shoots spikes from its shell using the same system. **

"Woah, cool," breathed Sakura.

"Cloyster, knock down the walls with your Spike Cannon!" commanded TenTen. Sakura braced herself for the attack. Cloyster closed its shell and glowed white. Then, it fired multiple white spikes toward the wall TenTen was pointing at. Soon, the wall was knocked down, and surprisingly, Sakura and TenTen found that they were free from the maze.

"Wow, nice thinking, TenTen," praised Sakura.

"If you can't use logic, then you'll have to use force," said TenTen, winking. She returned Cloyster to its Pokeball. The two girls started to run off when the Trick Master suddenly appeared.

"Is it possible that one group has made it out of the maze already?" asked the Trick Master to himself. He continued, "You're amazing! I'm impressed!" Then he started laughing like a maniac.

"Is he always like this?" asked Sakura.

"I guess so," replied TenTen. Before the girls could go anywhere further, a hidden door on the maze wall started to swing open. Sakura and TenTen jogged right around the corner of the maze to see Naruto and Sasuke walking out of the door.

"Sasuke-kun, Naruto, you made it!" exclaimed Sakura.

"Took you two long enough," said TenTen.

"Sakura-chan, you should've seen Sasuke stumble around the maze like an idiot!" exclaimed Naruto.

"Che, I wasn't the only one," retorted Sasuke.

"Well, at least I was the one who found the way out, dattebayo!" boasted Naruto.

"Only because of your Marshtomp," stated Sasuke.

"Oh, you used Marshtomp's radar-like fin to help search for the way out, Naruto? For once, I say nice thinking," complimented Sakura.

Naruto grinned goofily and said, "Thanks, Sakura-chan. How did you and TenTen get through?"

"Well," Sakura started.

TenTen finished, "I used my Cloyster to knock down the walls, as you can clearly see behind us." TenTen motioned to the destroyed maze wall behind them. Sasuke raised his eyebrows and Naruto was staring, agape.

"Is that even allowed in this stupid game?" asked Sasuke.

"The Trick Master didn't say **how** we can get through the maze now, did he?" replied TenTen, smirking.

"Che, fine," said Sasuke.

"What do we do now?" asked Naruto.

"We go on to whatever obstacle's next. Let's go, Sakura," said TenTen, running off in one direction. Sakura followed close behind.

"Do you think we can follow them, teme?" asked Naruto.

"Do whatever you like, dobe," replied Sasuke.

Naruto twitched, but kept his cool for once. The blond ran off after Sakura and TenTen. Sasuke sighed and followed Naruto.

Naruto and Sasuke found TenTen and Sakura walking along two rows of logs, crossing a huge river. Before the two boys could catch up to them, they spotted the Trick Master appear suddenly on a log beside TenTen's. He told them something, jumped around, laughed hysterically, and fell into the river because the log broke. Naruto reminded himself not to become too excited on those logs. The girls were walking further. Naruto snapped back to reality and saw Sasuke on one of the logs as well. He was right behind Sakura. Naruto ran towards his friends and balanced himself on one of the logs.

He tried to catch up with the other three, and was doing a good job at it too. He almost lost his balance once, but quickly got back on track. Once he caught up with his other friends, TenTen asked, "So why did you two follow us?"

"I don't want one or two of my friends to lose their way and be lost somewhere in this house. If we go together, then we may be able to solve things better, "replied Naruto.

"Hm, alright. Watch your step, okay? I tripped and almost fell into the river, if I didn't use my weapons to drag myself back up. It won't be pretty to fall into that river. The rapids seem to be strong," stated TenTen.

"Okay… thanks for the heads up," replied Naruto. As they continued walking, they heard a scream. Naruto quickly turned around and saw that the log Sakura and Sasuke were walking on split. "Sakura-chan! Sasuke!" Naruto screamed.

Naruto was about to go and help his friends, but Sasuke already got things under control. He grabbed Sakura's waist, held her tightly against him, and threw out a Pokeball. Grovyle came out, quickly grabbed Sasuke and Sakura and jumped to the log Naruto and TenTen were on.

"_I never knew Grovyle could do something like that,"_ thought Naruto. _"Sasuke must have trained it really well. Even though I train with him almost all the time, I still don't know much about how he raises his Pokemon."_

"Sasuke-kun, thank you," said Sakura.

Sasuke didn't reply. He just returned Grovyle to its Pokeball and kept walking. Sakura sighed, shrugged, and walked behind him. TenTen was a little surprised at the fall, but she quickly got back on track. Naruto was deep in thought about Grovyle being able to carry two people at once and being able to jump in mid-air.

Once they were all on the other side, the Trick Master popped up again, and led them to another room: one full of ropes.

"Come on guys, let's go!" encouraged Naruto. Before anyone could stop him, he already grabbed onto a rope and started to swing to the other side. Of course, his bad luck kicked in at once. The rope started to stretch out, and Naruto was about to hit a wall, when he quickly called out his Staravia, let go of the rope, and flew back to his friends.

"You know it's stupid to do something rash in this Trick House, Naruto," chided Sakura.

"Sorry, Sakura-chan. I just can't wait to get to the finish line," apologized Naruto.

The Trick Master appeared again, out of the blue. He explained, "The key to the rope swing is to choose your ropes carefully! If you don't…" That man tried to swing to the other side, but ended up crashing into a wall. He continued, "Your rope would stretch out and you and this wall could become very close!" The Trick Master then slid down to the bottom, where it was filled with water.

"Alright! I won't make the same mistake twice," stated Naruto.

All of them started pulling on ropes to make sure they were stable ones. Once they were all sure they had some stable ropes, they swung to the other side. Thankfully, all of them arrived in one piece.

"I'm curious," started Sakura.

"About what?" asked TenTen.

"I wonder if the Trick Master let us use our Pokemon in this competition. I mean, wouldn't that count as cheating? We could've easily gotten here with Naruto's Staravia, or another flying Pokemon. We got out of that maze because of you Cloyster. Do any other people do that?" asked Sakura.

"I think of those actions as 'using your head and finding an easier way out of this mess'. Besides, that Trick Master is too cheerful to say anything," replied TenTen.

"Okay…" trailed Sakura.

"Well, let's move on, guys!" said Naruto. All of them ran off to the next room.

Once they got there, they saw another room full of hanging ropes. The Trick Master appeared and explained the trick to them, "This next challenge is the famous rope climb! The object is to climb all the way up and choose the right box. Careful what you choose!" The Trick Master started climbing one rope, and suddenly got hit repeatedly by a hammer when he opened the box at the top. He continued, "Or it could all go to your head! You goof up this trick, and you'll be hitting the floor real quick!" At that moment, he crashed to the ground.

"Okay! Let's go up this one guys!" shouted Naruto. The blond had already started climbing the rope before anyone could protest.

"Hn, do whatever you want, dobe. I'm choosing this one," said Sasuke, climbing up a different rope.

"Wanna watch them crash to the ground, Sakura?" asked TenTen.

"Sure," replied Sakura. The two girls stood in place, not climbing up any ropes. Soon enough, Naruto's rope was snipped off by a pair of mechanical scissors and Sasuke endured too many hits to the head with a hammer.

"I don't see the point in completing the tricks in this room," said Sakura.

"I agree. Let's just move on to the next room," stated TenTen.

"Hey, guys! Wait for us!" shouted Naruto, scampering after Sakura and TenTen.

When the four of them got to the next room, all they saw were people falling and dust in the air. "What's going on here?" asked Naruto.

"Glad you asked," answered the Trick Master, appearing out of nowhere, once again. "It's time for the… pit traps! A word of caution. Step lightly or AHHH!" The Trick Master fell into a huge hole while talking. The four young teens crowded around the hole to check on the Trick Master.

"Do you think he's lonely and needs some attention?" asked Sakura.

"Could be. I've never seen anyone so hyped up," answered TenTen. She glanced at Naruto and said, "I take that back. Maybe I have."

"Alright! I'm absolutely sure that the right path is this way!" declared Naruto, pointing.

"What makes you so sure?" asked Sasuke.

"Trust me, I know exactly where I'm AHH!" Naruto fell face first into a hole.

"You were saying?" taunted Sasuke.

"Shut up, teme," retorted Naruto.

After a lot of falling into holes and climbing back up, the four young teens finally got to the next room. "I thought I'd never get out of there," complained Sakura.

"Thank God we did," said Naruto.

"What's next?" asked Sasuke. He searched around the room for the tricks that were set up, but couldn't find any.

The Trick Master popped up again. "Hello! You have now reached the end of the Trick House contest! Unfortunately, a few other people have already made it before you did. Thanks for trying though!" He ran away, laughing like a maniac.

TenTen sighed and said, "Oh well, we tried."

"It was fun, somehow," stated Sakura.

"I say it was a waste of time," complained Sasuke.

"Oh, come on, Sasuke-kun. It wasn't that bad," said Sakura.

"Yeah, teme! Lighten up!" encouraged Naruto.

"Where're you three heading for next? Mauville City?" asked TenTen.

"Yep! I'm going to participate in the Escargot Cup, and these two are going to challenge the leader," replied Sakura.

"Oh, I see. I'm heading to Mauville City too. I'm going to go meet an old friend of mine. We talked and decided that we would meet in Mauville, since his Pokemon's at the day care there. We haven't seen each other in a while. I can't wait to see him again!" squealed TenTen.

"Is he your boyfriend?" asked Naruto, innocently.

"NO! H-He's just an old f-friend!" stammered TenTen.

"Right… Anyway, why don't you come with us, TenTen?" invited Sakura.

"Sure, if you guys don't think I'm some kind of burden or anything," said TenTen.

"We don't mind! Right, teme?" asked Naruto, nudging Sasuke with his elbow.

"Hn, whatever," replied Sasuke.

"Just take that as a yes," suggested Sakura.

"Um, okay. Oh, and by the way, Sakura, I'm going to be participating in the Escargot Cup too," said TenTen. Sakura's eyes widened first, then she smiled.

"Glad to hear that, TenTen. I can't wait to battle you!" said Sakura.

"Me too. Let's hope we can both make it to the second round," replied TenTen.

"So you're a coordinator?" asked Naruto.

"Well, let's just say that I'm entering this contest just for fun. The truth is, I'm really into battles. Contests have a battle round too, so I want to check it out by entering the Escargot Cup." She continued, "Oh, and I know another person who's participating. You may or may not know her."

"Who? Is she famous?" asked Sakura.

"Well, sort of. She's a tough trainer, but she's just a rookie coordinator. She's also my old friend's cousin," answered TenTen.

"Oh, who?" asked Sakura, again.

"She's one of the gym leaders of Mosdeep City, Hinata Hyuuga," replied TenTen.

"Wait, Hyuuga? The name of the family who have run the Mosdeep Gym for God knows how long?" asked Naruto.

"Well, I'm glad to hear that you know some general knowledge, Naruto. Yes, Hyuuga. My old friend is Neji Hyuuga. He and his cousin, Hinata, are the gym leaders of Mosdeep City. They work well together. I've seen them battle together, and they're strong!" explained TenTen.

"Wow, so that Hinata Hyuuga's going to be in the Escargot Cup? She's going to be tough to beat, I'm sure," said Sakura.

"Hinata's not very confident of herself, but from what I've seen, she's a tough gym leader. She's also going to be with Neji at Mauville. Naruto, Sasuke, maybe you two can ask them a thing or two. After all, you two are going to have to battle them for the Mind Badge," suggested TenTen.

"I can't wait to meet the Hyuugas! I'm going to challenge them to a battle in Mauville! Dattebayo!" shouted Naruto.

"Hold your horses, Naruto. We have to get to Mauville City first," said Sakura. She switched to the map application on her Poketch and started giving directions. "Okay. Mauville City's not far off now. We're almost there. We just need to go straight, then turn right."

"Okay! Let's move!" shouted Naruto. The four of them dashed towards Mauville City, excited for the events that awaits them.

* * *

**Yay, I'm done with this chapter! I hope you guys enjoyed it! I stayed up until 11 P.M typing this chapter! Well, at least I updated! Can you guys please check out the poll I have on my profile too? It's asking whether Hinata, TenTen, Ino, or Karin should go on to the final round. **

**Let me explain a few things. Hinata's one of the gym leaders of Mosdeep City. She's a toughie, but she's still in-training when it comes to contests. She and her cousin, Neji, don't get along very well. Even so, they work well together. Plus, Hinata has been training with her father, who used to be one of the gym leaders of Mosdeep City as well. **

**TenTen's a tough girl. She loves her weapons, especially her kunais, and keeps them with her on her journey. She's not a big fan of contests, but she loves battling. TenTen's just entering the Escargot Cup to see how contests work. She looks forward to the battling rounds. **

**Ino has been Sakura's best friend for a long time. Ino headed off on her journey before Sakura did, so she has one or two more contest ribbons than Sakura does. She is sometimes overconfident and that either ends up as either an advantage or disadvantage for her.**

**Karin is an elite member of Team Sound. She doesn't like contests, but, like TenTen, she likes to battle. Her main reason for entering the Escargot Cup is to get back at Sakura for beating her back at Dewford Town. She has gained a few more Pokemon in her team, so she's going to be a tough rival for Sakura! **

**Okay, so that's basically it. Please review, review, review, and vote on my poll, or tell me your vote in your reviews! **


	17. Something's Rusty!

**Another update! I hope this chapter will satisfy the people out there who like this fic. Enjoy! **

**

* * *

****Something's Rusty!**

"Ahhhh!" A scream woke Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura from their nap. TenTen was clutching her backpack like it was her own baby.

"TenTen, what's wrong?" asked Sakura.

"My weapons! They're ruined!" gushed TenTen, pulling out her hair.

"Your weapons?" asked Naruto.

"Yes, Naruto, my weapons. Someone destroyed them!" screeched TenTen.

"How do they look now?" asked Sasuke.

"See for yourself!" said TenTen, throwing her kunais toward the three young teens.

Sasuke picked one of the kunais up and examined it. "It looks like they've been chewed on," said Sasuke.

"What kind of person can possibly chew on my precious weapons?" asked/yelled TenTen.

"TenTen, can we please go on to Mauville City? Since you've already woken us up, we might as well move on," suggested Naruto.

"There's no helping it. I'll just have to buy new kunais in Mauville City," sighed TenTen.

As they were walking, Sakura asked TenTen, "Were your kunais fine last night?"

"I polished them, and put them in my bag. They were perfectly fine," answered TenTen.

"I don't think a person can chew on kunais," stated Sasuke.

"I don't think so either. It may be a Pokemon, you know," said Sakura.

"Maybe. I'm going to slice that Pokemon into little pieces if I ever lay my hands on it," growled TenTen.

"Erm, those weapons are really precious, aren't they?" asked Sakura.

"They sure were!" replied TenTen.

"Guys, can we focus on getting to Mauville City right now?" asked Naruto.

"We can talk **and** walk, Naruto! Zip it!" yelled TenTen.

"Sheesh, okay, okay," said Naruto.

"Eeek! My precious bike!" screeched a voice. The four young teens rushed to the source of the screech. They ran, full speed, towards the person, and were surprised to see…

"Ino?!" shouted Sakura, surprised.

"Huh? Oh, hey Billboard Brow. Did any of your Pokemon destroy my bike?!" yelled Ino.

"Ino, cool it. It's just a bike. We can walk to Mauville," said the laid-back Shikamaru.

"This bike was a present from my dad! I can't just ignore it!" retorted Ino.

"Your bike was destroyed too?" asked TenTen.

"Who are you, and what do you mean 'too'?" asked Ino.

"The name's TenTen. My weapons were ruined by something as well," said TenTen.

"There's something fishy going on here," said Naruto.

"Well duh! There's something eating metal in this area! My bike and her weapons weren't the only victims. I've seen other people lose things that are made of metal: keys, bikes, chains, whatever! I've even seen a metal bridge that was destroyed by that Pokemon!" gushed Ino.

"Now I'm interested. I'm going to find that Pokemon!" declared Naruto, and he rushed off.

"Do you guys trust him to not get lost?" asked Chouji, munching on his chips.

"I think we'll leave him alone for now. He may come to Mauville City afterwards. I'm going to go there now. Maybe then Naruto will learn to use his PokeNavi," said Sakura.

"You got a point. I'm coming with you," said TenTen. The two girls headed off to Mauville City with Sasuke.

"Ino, you're going to Mauville City too aren't you? You're going to participate in the Escargot Cup anyway," said Shikamaru.

"Well, I guess there's no future for my poor bike. I'll just head off to Mauville City, but using a different route than the one Sakura's taking," stated Ino.

"A longer route?" sighed Shikamaru.

"Nope. I know a much shorter way than the one they're taking," said Ino.

"Good. I don't want to do any more walking," said Shikamaru.

"Just get up and start walking you lazy deer!" yelled Ino.

"Okay, whatever," said Shikamaru.

With Naruto

"_Oh man, I think I'm lost! H-Hey, I have my PokeNavi with me! I hope I can figure out how to use it,"_ thought Naruto. He fumbled around with his PokeNavi for a long time. Finally, he gave up. _"Ahhh! This thing's too hard to control! I'll just use Marshtomp's radar to find my way to Mauville City." _ Unknown to him, something was watching him from among the tall grass.

Naruto took out Marshtomp's Pokeball, and was about to call it out, when a figure jumped out and stole the Pokeball. Then, it quickly scampered away. "Hey! Get back here!" shouted Naruto, chasing the figure. _"Wait, that might be the metal eating Pokemon. Pokeballs are made of metal after all, aren't they? This is my chance to catch it! I'm a genius!"_ Naruto thought.

The young blond ran full speed, then dove on top of the Pokemon. To his surprise, the Pokemon felt very tiny… and hard. "Stop squirming, will you?" complained Naruto, when the Pokemon under him kept trying to get away. "Now, give me back Marshtomp's Pokeball," Naruto commanded. The Pokemon attacked him with a Metal Claw as an answer, then ran away again.

"Hey! Don't play dirty!" yelled Naruto, chasing the Pokemon once again. He took out Vulpix's Pokeball and threw it. "Vulpix, let's go! Stop that Pokemon by making a ring of fire around it with your Flamethrower!" commanded Naruto. In mid-air, Vulpix unleashed a column of fire and drew a fire ring around the gluttonous Pokemon.

"Heh, nowhere to run now. Let's see who you are first," muttered Naruto. He held up his Pokedex to examine the Pokemon with a huge appetite for steel.

**Aron, the Iron Armor Pokemon. This Pokemon has a body of steel. To make its body, Aron feeds on iron ore that it digs from mountains. Occasionally, it causes major trouble by eating bridges and rails. **

"No wonder," mumbled Naruto. He put away his Pokedex and was about to speak again, when he got attacked by the Aron out of the blue. The young boy fell on his back, but immediately got back up. He yelled in horror when he saw the Aron trying to eat Marshtomp's Pokeball. "Hey, hey, hey! My Marshtomp's in there! Stop!" yelled Naruto. "Vulpix, use Will-O-Wisp!"

Vulpix sent some fireballs towards Aron, hitting it successfully. The Aron scrambled back and forth, trying to get rid of the burning sensation. It dropped Naruto's Pokeball in the process of running. "All right! Way to go, Vulpix! Now, since it's part steel, your fire attacks should have an effect on it. Okay, use Flamethrower again to trap it!" shouted Naruto.

Vulpix created a ring of fire around the scrambling Pokemon again. "Now, jump up!" commanded Naruto. Vulpix jumped high in the air, and waited for Naruto's command. "Use Fire Spin to completely trap it!" The little fox Pokemon used its Fire Spin to keep the Aron in one place. While the Aron was trapped in the Fire Spin, Naruto, called out Marshtomp and commanded it to put out the flames of the fire ring.

"Vulpix, you can cut off you Fire Spin now!" said Naruto. Vulpix landed, gracefully, on is paws after stopping its attack. "Now, use Quick Attack!" Vulpix ran swiftly towards Aron, leaving a white streak behind it, and successfully hit the iron Pokemon. Aron was knocked back a few feet, and was struggling to get up.

"I'm going to put your mischief to an end!" declared Naruto. He quickly got out a free Pokeball, and threw it at the wild Aron. "Don't let me down, Pokeball!" shouted Naruto. The Pokeball hit Aron's head, opened up, and engulfed it in a red light. The ball fell, and moved back and forth for a while. Naruto had beads of sweat rolling down his forehead, anticipating the capture. The Pokeball started to slow down, then stopped completely.

The blond boy sighed and jumped for joy. "Oh yeah! I caught a new Pokemon, dattebayo!" cheered Naruto. "Wait 'till the others see I've caught the troublemaker. Sasuke-teme's got nothing on me now!" While Naruto was lost in his own little world, someone was coming towards him. His Vulpix and Marshtomp detected the intruder and they both tried to get Naruto's attention.

"What is it, guys?" asked Naruto. Marshtomp and Vulpix both gestured towards the bushes, where they heard the invader. _"An intruder?"_ thought Naruto. There was some more rustling, and the figure showed himself.

"Oh, it's just you guys," said Naruto, relieved. Sasuke, Sakura, and Ino came out from the bushes.

"We saw fire, so we thought you'd done something you shouldn't," explained Sakura.

"We wouldn't be surprised if you did," commented Ino, sneering. Naruto twitched in anger at the comment.

"Well, you should be thanking me, Ino, since I caught the troublemaker that destroyed your precious bike!" shouted Naruto. Now it was Ino's turn to twitch.

"Why should I thank you? All you did was catch it. My bike can't be fixed just because you caught that Pokemon, you know," retorted Ino.

"What?! At least you should be thankful that the Pokemon's caught. Now there won't be any future problems because I caught it!" Naruto fumed.

"Hn, this is just delaying us from getting to Mauville," said Sasuke. The two blonds stopped their verbal war and regained their composure.

"Fine. Well, at least I caught a new Pokemon," boasted Naruto. Ino shook her head at that comment.

"Out of curiosity, was that Pokemon an Aron?" asked Sakura.

"Yep. That troublemaker kept trying to run away from me, but I caught it! Dattebayo!" cheered Naruto. He looked around for a while and continued, "Hey, where're Shikamaru and Chouji?"

"Shikamaru said it was 'too troublesom' for him to come with us, and Chouji would rather spend his time preparing barbeque than come with us," explained Ino.

Naruto sighed. "Typical Shikamaru and Chouji. Well, let's get going to Mauville City now!" Naruto was about to walk off when someone tugged on his shirt sleeve. He turned his head to see Ino. There was anger written all over her face.

"What're we going to do about my bike? That Aron ate it, and you caught it, Naruto, so you think of something!" yelled Ino.

Naruto sighed and replied, "Fine. I'll just let Aron eat the rest of your bicycle, and when we get to Mauville, you can buy a new one. I heard that there was a pretty famous bicycle store there."

Ino laughed lightly and said, "**I** have to pay for the bike?"

"Uh yeah! It was your fault for leaving it out in the open!" Naruto shouted. Now he was getting really pissed.

"Hey guys, less arguing, more walking," suggested Sakura. She and Sasuke were already walking back. Naruto and Ino stopped arguing and followed Sasuke and Sakura back.

"Oh, there you are, Naruto," greeted Chouji, while munching his chips and devouring barbeque. Shikamaru was sprawled out on the grass, watching the clouds drift by.

"Hey, Chouji, Shikamaru," greeted Naruto. "Okay, Ino. Where're the remains of your bike?" Ino was taken aback by the question.

"You were serious when you said you were going to let that Aron eat my bike?" asked Ino. She looked surprised, but also a little angry at the same time.

"Yep. It would be a waste if the bike's left here. It would at least fill up Aron's stomach," said Naruto, seriously.

Ino gave up and replied, "It's right there." She gestured behind the tent that she had been sleeping in. Naruto ran there and called out his newly captured Aron.

"Have a nice snack, Aron," commented Naruto. The iron Pokemon immediately started chewing on the remnants of the bicycle.

Ino was watching from afar and muttering, "My bike, my poor bike." Sakura was beside her, patting her shoulder.

After Aron finished eating up the remnants of Ino's bike, Naruto re-appeared from behind the tent and suggested, "Now, why don't we all go to Mauville City together?"

"Why do you say 'we all'?" asked Ino. She's currently holding a grudge against Naruto for making his Aron eat her bike, or rather, the remains of her bike.

"The least I can do is travel with you guys. I know it isn't much, but, I do want to do something for you, Ino, as compensation for her bike, even though it was my **Pokemon** that destroyed your bike," answered Naruto.

"_Maybe he isn't as bad as I thought he was,"_ thought Ino. Sakura smiled at Naruto's answer. Sasuke just uttered his "hn".

"Alright, we can go there together. It's not far off now, anyway," said Ino. Turning to Sakura, she continued, "And of course, Sakura and I can enter the big contest together." Sakura gave a smile to Ino, then her face showed determination.

"They face off once again," muttered Shikamaru, getting up from the grass.

"All right, let's get going! We don't want to waste anymore time," declared Naruto.

* * *

**I hope this chapter was good enough for all of you! Since I haven't updated in a while, I thought it would be nice if I updated "My Girl's Ex-Boyfriend" and this story. Please review! **


	18. Run In With The Hyuugas

**Hey everyone! Sorry for not updating for a long time now. I'm now done with my final exams, and my freshman year! I'm going to be a sophomore now! Yays! Enjoy this chapter! I tried to make this chapter longer than my usual ones, since I haven't updated for a while now. =) **

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* * *

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**Run In With The Hyuugas**

"Hey, have any of you seen TenTen?" inquired Sakura, finalizing realizing that their Chinese friend weren't with them.

"Now that you mention it, I haven't seen her since her weapons got eaten by Aron," replied Naruto.

"The last time I saw her was when she was running somewhere and yelling something along the lines of 'How dare you eat my precious weapons! They were a gift from someone important! I'll hunt you down if it's the last thing I do!' Yeah, she said something like that," explained Ino.

Meanwhile, with TenTen…

"What kind of devil would do something like this? I'm going to hunt you down, you crook! Those were my most prized possessions! A long time friend gave it to me for beating him in battle! That happens once in a lifetime! I'll KILL whoever it was!" ranted TenTen, scourging the forest for the criminal.

Back to the large group

"_Hm, I thought I heard something. Must be the wind,"_ thought Sasuke.

"Ah, we're here! Mauville City! Ino, race you there!" challenged Sakura. The rosette and the blond dashed towards the city, leaving the boys behind.

"Man, how much more troublesome can women get?" Shikamaru asked himself. He yawned and lazily walked to Mauville.

"Come on, Shikamaru! Aren't you the least bit excited? I am! Look out Kakashi-sensei, 'cuz the Dynamo badge is gonna be mine!" cheered Naruto. Sasuke muttered, "Idiot" and walked away from him.

"Hey, teme! Wait up!" shouted Naruto, running after Sasuke. Shikamaru and Chouji both walked really slowly towards the city, not giving a care in the world.

* * *

"Ha! I got to the center first, Billboard Brow," taunted a panting Ino.

"No way! My foot stepped in a second faster than yours," replied an equally tired Sakura.

"Whatever! Let's get some rest and wait for the guys. I'm pretty sure Shikamaru and Chouji are going to take their time. It's going to take a while for them to get here," muttered Ino.

"I'm sure Naruto's running towards the Pokemon Center right now. He may even be competing with Sasuke-kun," Sakura thought out loud.

"Hey, Sakura, you know that there's a Pokemon Breeding Center in Mauville, right?" asked Ino. Sakura gave a small nod. "Then why don't we visit it when the guys get here? It'll be good experience. We'll get to see how the Pokemon are taken care of." Sakura nodded in agreement.

The doors of the Pokemon Center, then, swung open, revealing a panting Naruto. "I got h-here first, Sasuke-teme!" he half panted, half shouted.

Sasuke calmly walked up beside Naruto. "You idiot. I wasn't even running," he replied. The Uchiha casually strode in the room. Naruto was leaning against the wall, trying to catch his breath. Once the four of them sat down somewhere, Naruto started babbling on how he caught the Aron and how it was a tough battle. Sakura and Ino listened half-heartedly while Sasuke paid no attention to the babbling blond.

The center doors swung open again, to reveal a yawning Shikamaru, and Chouji munching on a new bag of chips. Ino stomped towards them and yelled, "You two always take your time doing something! Why can't both of you speed up for once?"

"I can't. It's too troublesome for me," replied Shikamaru, nonchalantly.

"Geez, fine. Okay, now that we're all here and rested, let's head off to the breeding center!" declared Ino. Shikamaru started to object, but the young girl was already walking off.

"What a drag. She's too enthusiastic for her own good," commented Shikamaru.

"Well, Ino's Ino. We can't really change her. Let's go, guys!" said Sakura, following Ino. The four guys followed the girls to the breeding center as well.

Once they reached the center, the first thing that caught the two young girls' eyes were the number of Pokemon eggs neatly arranged on shelves. Sakura and Ino both walked in a daze towards the shelves and examined the Pokemon eggs.

"Well, thank you leaving you Pokemon in our hands again, Hyuuga-sama," said a man's voice.

"I'm so sorry, Neji. Really. I didn't even know a Pokemon could do something like eat iron. I really loved the kunais you gave me," followed a feminine voice. Sakura's ears perked up, as well as Naruto's. Both of them turned to the direction of the voice to see—

"TenTen!" shouted Sakura and Naruto, simultaneously. The Chinese brunette looked up and smiled. "Hey guys," she greeted.

"You weren't with us when we got here," stated Naruto.

"Well, yeah, but I had to come here anyway. I had to meet a good friend of mine," replied TenTen.

"I see. And he's the gym leader of Mosdeep, right?" asked Sakura.

"Right. Him and his younger cousin. I'll introduce you to them once they come out," offered TenTen.

Right on cue, two young people emerged from the other side of the room. One of them had a proud atmosphere surrounding him while the other had an insecure air crowding around her. The young boy had long brown hair tied in a low ponytail while the young girl had short purple hair. One trait that really stood out was that they both had eyes like pearls.

"Hey, Neji, Hinata, these are some of the friends I've made while coming to Mauville," said TenTen. Neji seemed uninterested while Hinata started twiddling her fingers and blushing. The Chinese brunette introduced each of them to the two Hyuugas, and they all shook hands. Neji and Sasuke exchanged glares instead of a handshake.

"It feels like the tension's suddenly gotten unbearable," joked TenTen, pretending to loosen her collar. She quickly backed away when the two prodigies glared at her instead. "Are you guys here to pick up your Gallade and Kirlia?" asked TenTen, changing the subject.

On cue, Hinata's Pokeball opened and a enthusiastic Kirlia leaped out. She did a little twirl, spotted Hinata, and hugged her tightly. "Looks like your Kirlia really loves you," said Naruto, flashing Hinata his grin.

"Um, Kirlia and I h-have been together s-since I was e-eight," replied Hinata.

"Aren't you going to evolve her into a Gardevoir or Gallade?" asked Sakura.

"W-Well, Kirlia isn't very f-fond of evolving yet, s-so, I'm letting her choose to evolve or not," answered Hinata.

"Your Kirlia looks like it was well raised," commented Sasuke, getting closer to Kirlia to examine her. Sakura switched on her Pokedex and got some information on Kirlia.

**Kirlia, the Emotion Pokemon. It is said that a Kirlia that is exposed to the positive emotions of its trainer grows beautiful. This Pokemon controls psychokinetic powers with its highly developed brain. **

"Your Kirlia's beautiful! You must be a very optimistic person, Hinata," praised Sakura. Hinata blushed lightly at Sakura's compliment.

"Thank you," whispered Hinata.

"Neji, show them your Gallade," pleaded TenTen. Neji sighed, but released his Pokemon anyway. A strong, but stoic looking Gallade materialized in front of them.

"I'll admit, you have a really strong looking Gallade," complimented Sasuke. Naruto and Sakura's jaws dropped. Sasuke was never a person to compliment a person's Pokemon just by looking at their traits. Naruto suddenly got more determined to train his team. Neji seems like a really strong opponent.

The teens were interrupted by the owner of the Day Care. "Kids, why don't you come on back and let your Pokemon run wild there? There're a lot more Pokemon at the back. Let them relax there," suggested the old man.

"Well, I think my Pokemon needs some fun time. Sakura, you in?" asked Ino. The rosette nodded and the two friends raced to the back.

"Neji, aren't you coming?" asked TenTen.

Neji scoffed and said, "I'd rather be training, TenTen. Hinata-sama, let's go."

"Come on, Neji, have some fun! You're too serious," teased TenTen. She suddenly grabbed Neji's hand and dragged him out back.

"Hinata, are you coming?" asked Naruto.

"W-Well," started Hinata.

Naruto didn't give her time to finish. "Let your Pokemon run wild there. I'd like to see your other Pokemon too. I'm sure you a strong gym leader. Be prepared to fight Sasuke and I, okay?" Naruto took her hand and led her to the backyard.

Only Sasuke was left, standing. "Aren't you going to join your friends?" asked the owner. Sasuke shook his head, and casually walked out of the Day Care Center.

In the Backyard

"Wow, look at all those Pokemon!" said Naruto, overwhelmed by the sight.

Hinata walked up beside him and said, "W-Well, this is a day care, and the only one in Mauville too, s-so it's very popular. A lot of people trust t-the owner."

"Awesome!" exclaimed Naruto. He took out all his Pokeballs and let his Pokemon run free. "Okay guys, go out and have some fun!" Naruto's four Pokemon immediately ran off, trying to bond with other Pokemon at the Day Care.

"Y-You have some pretty strong looking P-Pokemon too," complimented Hinata.

Naruto grinned and replied, "Thanks Hinata. Hey, let your Pokemon out too. I really want to see them." Hinata fumbled around in her pockets and got out two Pokeballs. She threw them all into the air, they opened up, and let out two Psychic Pokemon.

"Spoink, Smoochum, go out a-and have some fun. Kirlia, you too," said Hinata, turning to her very first Pokemon.

"Hey, your Pokemon are in their pre-evolved forms. Don't you want to evolve them?" asked Naruto.

"W-Well, like I said, I d-don't want to evolve them u-unless they want me to. I-I don't train them as much as my cousin does e-either," answered Hinata.

"I see. Hey, are you hungry, Hinata?" asked Naruto, out of the blue. Hinata hadn't even answered when Naruto took her hand again and pulled her to a nearby tree. He sat her down then he sat down. Naruto dug around in his backpack and took out two cups of instant ramen. Then, he pulled out a bottle. Naruto poured the hot water in the two ramen cups, and gave one to Hinata. He smiled at her and said, "It's fun to eat while watching your Pokemon have some fun."

Hinata was blushing, hard. Naruto was being very nice to her, and she wasn't very used to it. She looked around and spotted Shikamaru napping under a nearby tree. A Slowking, Stantler, and Ivysaur were napping, along with Shikamaru, and Chouji was eating chips with a Munchlax. A Butterfree sat on his head, and a Hippopotas lounged in a lake, nearby. Hinata tapped Naruto's shoulder and asked, "T-Those two there don't look very enthusiastic. A-Are they always l-like this?"

Naruto nodded and replied, "Watching the clouds and sleeping are Shikamaru's hobbies. Chouji's always eating too." He slurped some more of his ramen. Hinata slowly, and quietly ate her ramen. Suddenly, Naruto got up and examined Shikamaru and Chouji's Pokemon. He commented, "Shikamaru and Chouji actually have some good Pokemon." Then, he sat back down and leaned against the tree. Having finished his ramen, he waited for Hinata to finish hers.

Hinata was getting faint. No one had ever been this nice to her before. The girl tried really hard not to pass out, and she was doing a good job at that. The Hyuuga ate her ramen slowly, while watching the blond beside her.

With Sakura and Ino 

"Alright, Marill, Masquerain, Sunflora, Jigglypuff, and Bayleef, come on out!" called out Ino. Her five Pokemon materialized in front of her and Sakura. The rosette got closer to the Pokemon and admired them.

"Your Surskit and Chikorita evolved. Nice work, Ino," complimented Sakura.

"Thanks, Billboard Brow. How are your Pokemon? They've gotten stronger, right?" asked Ino.

"Of course, pig! Okay guys," said Sakura, taking out her four Pokeballs. She threw them up and called out, "Combusken, Skitty, Eevee, Cherubi, you're up!" Her newly caught Cherubi floated around Sakura and Ino, and finally landed on Sakura's head.

"Well, that's a really cute Cherubi you caught!" admired Ino. Sakura got Cherubi to come down, and let her play at the center. She let her other Pokemon run wild as well. Ino continued, "Good work to you too, evolving your Torchic."

"Thank you, Ino. I appreciate being finally, recognized by you," said Sakura.

Ino nodded and asked, "Hey, do you have an outfit for the Escargot Cup yet?" Sakura froze and slowly turned her head towards Ino.

"Uh, I didn't know we needed to have an outfit for this contest," replied Sakura.

Ino sighed and suggested, "Why don't you and I go and shop for some outfits? I don't have one yet either."

Sakura nodded and said, "Sure. Do you think it's a good idea to leave our Pokemon here?"

"We'll tell the owner that we left them. I don't think he'll mind," said Ino.

"Okay, so, do you plan to go now?" asked Sakura. Ino nodded, and the two girls walked back to the center.

With Neji and TenTen

"See how much fun **some **of your Pokemon are having, Neji?" pointed out TenTen. Neji's Riolu and Xatu were running around, while his Gallade remained by his side. _"It's no joke when some people say the Pokemon reflects their trainers' personalities,"_ thought TenTen with a sigh.

The Chinese girl had let her own Pokemon out too. Her Staryu, Cloyster, and Croconaw were all soaking in a huge lake, filled with water Pokemon. TenTen looked around, enjoying the sight of lots of Pokemon relaxing and having fun, when she saw Naruto and Hinata sitting under a tree. _"Those two look like they're having a great time. I think Naruto's the first person who Hinata has spent free time with," _thought TenTen.

TenTen turned around, but bumped into Neji, who was staring, hard, at his cousin and Naruto. TenTen looked back and forth between Neji and his cousin. The Chinese girl then looked intently at Neji. _"I know that look. He doesn't approve of Naruto getting close to Hinata. Oh great, this is going to turn out ugly!"_ TenTen tried to talk to Neji, but he was already striding towards Naruto and Hinata, his Gallade following suit. _"Good luck, Naruto, dealing with Neji,"_ prayed TenTen.

* * *

Hinata was just finishing up her ramen when she sensed an ominous presence approaching her and Naruto. She quickly drank the remaining soup and stood up. Neji walked up to the two of them and glared at Naruto. The blond was already asleep, so Hinata had to shake him awake. Naruto groggily woke up to meet Neji glaring down at him. The blond quickly stood up and faced Neji.

"Uzumaki, was it?" Neji asked.

Naruto replied, "Yeah. Naruto Uzumaki."

"Uzumaki, I warn you to stay away from Hinata-sama. You are wasting her time," said Neji, threateningly.

Naruto got annoyed and retorted, "Well she needs to have some relaxation. You can't stop her from doing what she wants!"

"Uzumaki, unless you want to suffer a humiliating defeat, I advise you to step away from my cousin," threatened Neji.

"What if I don't? You know what, Neji? You're acting all high and mighty, but you need to learn to relax. You're just like Sasuke-teme!" said Naruto.

"Do not compare me to the Uchiha. You are a nobody, Uzumaki. Hinata-sama is the heir of the Hyuuga clan, and she needs to train much more if she hopes to become the leader of the Hyuuga clan someday. You are just having a bad influence on Hinata-sama," said Neji, nonchalantly.

"I'm a nobody? A nobody?" shouted Naruto, getting angry. Hinata suddenly stood up and tried to break up the fight between the two of them.

"You are not recognized by anybody. That would make you a nobody. Your fate has already been determined. You cannot reach your father," taunted Neji.

"I'm not as strong as my dad, but you can't go around telling people they're not 'fated' to become this, or not 'fated' to win! You can't determine that! You won't know unless you try!" retorted Naruto.

Neji grimaced and replied, "Then why don't we settle this right now? My Gallade versus your strongest Pokemon."

"That's fine with me!" replied Naruto. The blond ran off to find his Pokemon.

Hinata turned to her cousin and said, "Neji nii-san, that was o-over the line. You shouldn't have d-done that."

"Hinata-sama, that boy needs to learn his place," replied Neji.

"I can't believe you would chase a-away the one person I-I have become close f-friends with!" Hinata semi-shouted.

Neji wasn't even slightly affected by his cousin's words. The Hyuuga prodigy spotted Naruto running back to him. When Naruto got back to the Hyuugas, he suggested, "I don't want to destroy the peace this center has for the Pokemon, so I suggest we fight somewhere else."

"Hn, fine with me," replied Neji. He turned to Gallade and commanded, "Gallade, use Teleport." Gallad's body glows multicolored, then he sends multiple white energy rings that surrounds Naruto, Neji, and Hinata. The three of them disappeared, and so did Gallade.

With Sasuke

"_I need to train more, and catch more Pokemon,"_ thought Sasuke. He was messing around in some thick grass, then climbing up a huge rock formation. Once he got to the top of the rock formation, he called out all his Pokemon. Sasuke glanced around the environment, and saw that there were Whismers, Loudreds, and some other Pokemon on land, and Pidgeys, Starlys, and Wingulls flying in the air.

The Uchiha sighed and thought, _"At least there are __**some**__ Pokemon here. Okay, let's train." _Sasuke commanded, "Grovyle, use Leaf Blade. Sneasel, Ice Shard, and Houndour, Swift!" The three Pokemon charged towards the Whismers and Loudreds and attacked. The wild Pokemon defended themselves, but Sasuke's Pokemon worked on improving their speed. They tried to not let the wild Pokemon attack them again.

At one point, a Loudred used Hyper Voice on Sneasel, but the ice/dark type Pokemon used Slash to get back at the Loudred. While Sasuke was commanding his Pokemon, he sensed an ominous presence, close to him. The Uchiha examined his surroundings once more, and spotted a very unique Pokemon: an Absol. Absol looked very stunning, but it also had a threatening aura around it. The young teen took out his Pokedex to examine it further.

**Absol, the Disaster Pokémon. Absol live in steep mountainous regions, and rarely venture down into areas inhabited by humans, but should an Absol be seen by humans, it is said that catastrophe is soon to follow.**

"_The Disaster Pokemon, huh? This is one unique Pokemon. I can't let it escape,"_ planned Sasuke. He commanded his three Pokemon to attack Absol. Absol immediately sensed his attackers, and quickly used Double Team to surround them. Then, the Disaster Pokemon used Slash, simultaneously on the three Pokemon. _"He's too fast! I can't let it get away!"_ a determined Sasuke thought.

"Sneasel, Night Slash! Grovyle, use Leaf Blade again," commanded Sasuke. Sneasel's claws glowed purple, then it charged towards Absol for a hit. Absol jumped out of the way, but Grovyle got it from behind with Leaf Blade. The Disaster Pokemon fell, giving Sasuke an opening.

"Grovyle, Sneasel, Houndour, finish it!" shouted Sasuke. His Pokemon, once again, charged towards the fallen Absol, but before they could attack, Absol opened his eyes and stood up. Absol glared at all three of them with its eyes glowing red.

_"It's Leer!" _thought Sasuke. Once all three Pokemon were frozen in place, the scythe on Absol's head glowed white, and it swung its head, sending a white crescent blade of energy at the three Pokemon. The attack successfully hit Grovyle, Sneasel, and Houndour, sending them flying backwards. Sneasel used its claws to lessen the impact of being blown away. _"Now Razor Wind! I need to turn this battle around,"_ thought Sasuke.

"Sneasel, use Ice Beam!" shouted Sasuke. Sneasel sent out bolts of icy energy towards Absol, but the Pokemon dodged them gracefully.

"Houndour, now, use Shadow Ball!" Houndour jumped from behind Sneasel, and sent multiple Shadow Balls towards Absol. Absol used another Razor Wind attack. However, once the attack hit the Shadow Balls, the Shadow Balls were spread out. Absol stopped in its tracks, since it there was a dark purple wall between him and Sasuke's Pokemon.

Suddenly, ice shards and a Flamethrower attack came directly towards Absol. The Disaster Pokemon took the hit, and once it was down, Grovyle came at it with another Leaf Blade attack. Absol was knocked back, again.

Sasuke took the chance to throw an empty Pokeball at Absol. The Pokeball hit Absol, opened up, and bathed it in red light. Once Absol was inside, the Pokeball shook furiously. Sasuke watched in anticipation as the Pokeball shook, then slowlystarted to settle down. The red light on the Pokeball then switched off, and the capture was complete.

Sasuke was panting now. Absol's capture was harder than he thought. His Pokemon were all out of breath as well. Sasuke walked to Absol's Pokeball and picked it up. He smirked and thought, _"That's enough training for today."_ The young Uchiha returned all his Pokemon to their Pokeballs and started to climb down the mountain. However, something caught his attention. A group of people and a Pokemon materializing in the thick grass, underneath. Sasuke scoffed and muttered to himself, "Naruto and the two Hyuugas? This should be interesting." He sat down to watch the event.

With Naruto, Neji, and Hinata

"Well, which Pokemon are you going to use?" asked Neji. Naruto threw his Pokeball into the air and Marshtomp materialized in front of him. Neji ordered his Gallade to take his stance. Hinata was on the sidelines, trying to be the referee. If she couldn't stop them from fighting, she might as well be a referee. "Begin," said Hinata.

Naruto launched the first attack. "Marshtomp, use Mud Shot!" Marshtomp fired a stream of mud from its mouth. Gallade stood there, unmoving.

Neji closed his eyes and concentrated. Neji commanded Gallade telepathically, _"Psycho Cut."_ Gallade, then, moved forward, the blades on his arms glowing blue. He crossed his arms in front of his body, blocking the stream of mud. Then, he jumped into the air, and sliced Marshtomp with his blades once he got down.

Naruto was frustrated now. "Marshtomp, use Mud Bomb!" Marshtomp quickly got back up and fired multiple balls of mud towards Gallade. The psychic Pokemon dodged them gracefully.

"_Confusion,"_ commanded Neji, telepathically, once again. Gallade's body was outlined with blue energy, his eyes glowed blue, and took control of the mud balls that Marshtomp was firing. Gallade, then sent the mud balls back at Marshtomp. Naruto's Marshtomp was hit mercilessly, with its own Mud Bomb attack.

"Water Gun!" shouted Naruto. Marshtomp fired a stream of water at Gallade, but once again, its Confusion took control of the water. This time, Neji commanded Gallade to control Marshtomp as well. The psychic Pokemon flung Marshtomp far away from him. Marshtomp hit the mountain that Sasuke had climbed. Naruto was now worried about Marshtomp. However, the Mud Fish Pokemon wouldn't back down. He got back up, and prepared to attack again. Naruto didn't want to continue the match anymore since he didn't want to push his Marshtomp so hard.

"Backing down now? Too late," said Neji. _"Psycho Cut." _ Gallade's blade glowed blue again, and he charged towards Marshtomp.

"_I know what that attack does now,"_ though Naruto. He commanded, "Marshtomp, dodge it!" Before Gallade could reach him, Marshtomp jumped into the air. Then, he fired multiple mud balls at Gallade. What happened next was unexpected for Naruto. Gallade twirled multiple times, and launched multiple blue rings at toward Marshtomp. Each ring hit the mud balls, destroying them, but a lot more rings hit Marshtomp. The Mud Fish Pokemon fell to the ground, hard. When Naruto ran up to check on him, he was knocked out.

"Marshtomp can't b-battle anymore. G-Gallade is the winner," said Hinata. Neji went up to Gallade and patted his shoulder in appreciation.

Naruto whispered, "You did a great job, Marshtomp. Get some rest now." The blond returned Marshtomp to his Pokeball. He turned to Neji and said, "You're a really tough opponent. I look forward to battling you again at Mosdeep."

"Get stronger. Or else, it won't even be a challenge," taunted Neji.

"You and Hinata are fighting together at the gym, right?" asked Naruto.

"Yes. The Mosdeep gym has two gym leaders. Are you saying you're going to battle us with a partner?" Neji inquired.

"Sasuke and I are working together to achieve our goals. We'll train harder than before, and beat your gym!" declared Naruto.

"I hope Uchiha will put up a much better fight, and I hope you will get stronger," said Neji. He commanded Gallade to use Teleport on the three of them again, and they disappeared from the grounds.

On top of the rock formation, Sasuke smirked. _"The Hyuugas' gym will be a tough gym to beat. I'd better get stronger too."_ He then, started to climb down the mountain and go back to the Pokemon Center.

Meanwhile, with Sakura and Ino 

"Sakura, check out these Pokeball seals. You may want to use them in the Escargot Contest," recommended Ino.

"Ino, I thought we were here to buy some dresses for the contest?" asked Sakura, who was already holding two shopping bags in her hands.

"Well, we got some food for ourselves and our Pokemon for the rest of our journey. Isn't that a good thing?" inquired Ino, who was already picking out some Pokeball seals. She continued, "You'll want these seals, Sakura, trust me."

Sakura gave up and looked at the seals on display. _"I might as well take advantage of shopping,"_ thought the rosette. The two friends bought six Pokeball Capsules each, and picked out several Pokeball seals.

Ino picked out some heart seals, floral seals, and foamy seals while Sakura got some fire seals, electric seals, and party seals. Once they got their seals in a small bag, they set out to find some dresses. They hadn't gotten far when Ino suddenly rushed inside a shop, dragging Sakura with her.

Ino looked around the shop and rushed to grab a gorgeous blue dress, when she found another person trying to get the same dress.

"Sorry, but this dress is already taken," said the other girl.

"Well I didn't see you pay for it," retorted Ino.

Sakura ran up to Ino, and gasped. "Karin! You're here too?" Karin looked at Sakura and grinned.

"You're surprised? Now let go of the dress, blondie," taunted Karin.

"No way! This dress actually compliments my blond hair, unlike your messed up red hair!" retorted Ino.

"Wait, don't tell me you're actually planning on entering the Escargot Contest," assumed Sakura.

"Full points for pinky. Of course I'm entering the contest," said Karin, still pulling on the dress.

"You said you hated contests, and coordinators," said Sakura.

"Well, since you put up a good fight, I wondered if other coordinators can do the same," replied Karin.

"Ugh, that's it! Stone, paper, scissors for the dress," suggested Ino.

"That's just stupid," replied Karin.

"If you don't, the dress will tear," warned Ino. Karin sighed, "Fine." Sakura grabbed the dress and let the two girls play stone, paper, scissors.

"Let's play best of three," suggested Ino.

"I don't care. Just get on with it," said an impatient Karin.

Karin won the first round, but Ino won the second round. In the third round, both girls were waiting for the other to go first. Finally, they both went. Ino had paper while Karin had stone. Ino jumped for joy, grabbed the dress from Sakura, and ran to pay for it. Karin got frustrated, and stomped out of the store.

Ino came back to Sakura and took out the dress. She showed it off to Sakura. The dress was really beautiful. It was a light blue, strapless evening dress with a cluster of gems beading along the front and back. There was a cut out along the back as well. "It's really beautiful, Ino. I'm sure you'll look stunning in it," complimented Sakura.

Ino smiled and replied, "Thanks Sakura. Now, let's find a dress that you'll look gorgeous in." Ino's eyes scanned the store. She picked out some dresses for Sakura, but they didn't match her that well. Sakura looked at some dresses herself, and soon, her eyes landed on a short, red dress. She took it and examined it.

It was a red cocktail dress with a v-neckline. Slender straps upheld the neckline, and beneath the chest, a sparkling band of rhinestones adorned the waistline. The dress ended right above the knees. At the back, there were criss-crossed bold straps with rhinestone embroidery in the center of the cross. Sakura gaped at that dress. Ino came up to her and examined the dress as well. She held it up to Sakura and looked at her intently. The blond's face lit up and nodded in approval. Once Sakura had paid for the dress, the two friends left the store to go back to the Day Care Center.

The Day Care Center

When Sakura and Ino entered the center, she saw Naruto sitting alone in a corner. Sakura walked up to him and asked, "What happened to you? You look very… lifeless."

Naruto raised his head to look up at the rosette, and sighed. "I had a battle with Neji, and ended up losing; very badly, I might add."

"Oh, I'm sorry, Naruto. With some more training, I'm sure you'll be able to beat him. Heck, I'm sure you can beat him when we get to Mosdeep for your badge," reassured Sakura. She gave Naruto a short, friendly, hug. The blond smiled at Sakura and got up.

"You haven't gotten your Pokemon back, have you?" asked Naruto.

"No. Ino and I were shopping for our dresses. Why aren't you back at the Pokemon Center yet? It's already past lunchtime," said Sakura.

"I just wanted to be alone. I'll be going back now. See you there Sakura! You too, Ino!" Naruto waved and ran to the Pokemon Center.

"Wow, he recovers fast when you talk to him," pointed out Ino.

"I think of Naruto as a brother. I don't have any brothers, so I think of him as one," replied Sakura. The two of them hunted down their Pokemon and returned them to their Pokeballs. A while later, Ino had rounded up all her Pokemon, but Sakura was missing her Skitty.

"Skitty, Skitty, where are you?" called out Sakura, searching all over the place. She went through some tall grass and saw Skitty with another Skitty, chasing each others' tails. "There you are, Skitty," whispered Sakura. She bent down to pick up Skitty, but the other Skitty tackled her.

"Ouch! Hey, what do you think you're doing?" shouted Sakura. Ino came running up to Sakura and asked what was wrong. "That Skitty tackled me. Calm down, I'm just trying to get my Skitty." Sakura's Skitty also tried to talk to the other Skitty about how she was her owner.

"From what I can see, that Skitty's a male Skitty," said Ino.

"Okay, so what are you trying to say?" asked Sakura.

"Your Skitty's a female Skitty," continued Ino.

"And?" asked Sakura.

Ino slapped her forehead and replied, "That male Skitty's being overprotective of your Skitty. Don't you think for the slightest bit, that your Skitty likes that male Skitty, and vice versa?"

"Oh, really?" asked Sakura.

"I don't know. I just think that. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm right. Anyway, just get you Skitty back to her Pokeball," suggested Ino.

Sakura got up, took out Skitty's Pokeball and returned her to it. Sakura and Ino then walked back to the Pokemon Center.

When they got there, they saw that their companions either, had already finished eating, or were finishing up eating. Their Pokemon all finished eating. Nurse Shizune asked them if they had their lunch yet, and both of them said no. Shizune got some food for both of them, and their Pokemon. Naruto and Sasuke went off somewhere to train together, as did Neji and TenTen. Ino deduced that Shikamaru was probably in their room, napping, and Chouji went out to buy chips.

"So, it's just us girls," commented Ino. Hinata seemed too shy to say anything. "Come on, open up to us. Don't be shy," persuaded Ino.

"U-Um, what do you want me t-to say?" asked Hinata.

"For one, you seem to be pretty comfortable around Sakura's friend, Naruto. Any thoughts on him?" asked Ino.

Hinata immediately blushed, beet red and replied, "U-Um, well, h-he's a really sociable boy, a-and he's easy to talk to a-and bond with. He's also really c-c-c-cute." Hinata blushed even harder.

"It's normal for a girl to like a guy, Hinata. Don't be so embarrassed to talk about him," comforted Ino.

"M-My family would never approve of s-someone like Naruto," said Hinata.

"You mean your cousin?" asked Sakura. "He did look very emotionless; kind of like Sasuke sometimes."

"T-The only person Neji nii-san opens up to i-is TenTen. She's a-also his training partner," explained Hinata.

"What about you? I thought you were his gym partner," said Sakura.

"I am, b-but he doesn't think I-I'm worthy of being a-a gym leader," confessed Hinata.

"He needs to know that you can't change who you are. Just be yourself, Hinata, and get stronger. Are you planning on entering the contest here?" asked Ino.

"W-Well, I want to, b-but I don't know if Neji nii-san will let me," stuttered Hinata.

"Sakura and I will sneak you in as a competitor. Do you have a contest pass?" asked Ino.

"I do. I wanted to compete i-in contests, b-but my father put the burden of being gym leader o-on me, s-so, I don't have t-time for contests anymore," admitted Hinata.

"Well, just come with us, and we'll get you a spot there. If your cousin asks, we'll explain it to him. I'll take the lecturing, or whatever he gives," said Ino.

"Thanks Ino. Now I don't have to battle him or anything, like Naruto did," teased Sakura. Ino gently punched Sakura's arm.

"T-Thank you, Sakura and Ino. I'm very grateful," thanked Hinata.

"No problem, Hinata! It feels nice to help out a friend," replied Ino.

"Ino, let's register now. If we don't I think we're going to be too late," suggested Sakura.

"Oh yeah. Let's run there now!" said Ino.

"N-No need for that. K-Kirlia, use Teleport," commanded Hinata, throwing up a Pokeball. Kirlia appeared, and, like Gallade, sent rings of white energy that surrounded the three girls. Then, they disappeared, along with Kirlia.

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**This chapter's longer than my other ones, and I didn't want to put off the Naruto and Neji fight until next chapter, so I put the battle here. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please, please, please review! I'm motivated by the reviews you guys give me! ^_^ **


	19. Ready for the Escargot Contest?

**Hello again, everyone! I'll be introducing the Escargot Contest in this chapter, so watch out for that! I hope you all will enjoy this chapter! I think I can update faster since it's the holidays now. Anyways, enjoy this chapter, and review after reading please! Oh, and I would like to thank an anonymous reviewer for his/her constructive criticism. I'll try to do what she says, but I'm still an amateur, so I may not be as good… On with the chapter!**

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* * *

****Ready for the Escargot Contest? **

The three girls, Sakura, Hinata, and Ino plopped down on a sofa in the Pokemon Center. They looked around and saw that the boys hadn't returned yet. Sakura asked Hinata, "So, are you excited for your very first contest?"

Hinata fidgeted, then nodded. Sakura replied, "I'm nervous too, and it's not even my first contest!"

"H-How many ribbons h-have you won, Sakura?" asked Hinata.

"Well, I only have one right now," answered Sakura.

"Only one, Billboard Brow? I guess your win at Rustboro was just beginners' luck. I already have three," taunted Ino.

"How in the world did you get three?" asked an astonished Sakura.

"I participated in contests that were held in small towns. I already had one when I competed with you in Rustboro," explained Ino.

"You t-two are amazing. I-I don't think I can win a contest o-on my first try like you, S-Sakura," admitted Hinata.

Sakura patted Hinata's shoulder and said, "I'm guessing me winning was because of luck. Besides, don't be like this. Be happy that you're finally going to be in a contest, Hinata, okay?" Hinata nodded slowly and hugged both Sakura and Ino.

"I have never b-been able to t-talk to anyone l-like this," confessed Hinata. "Y-You two are like m-my closest friends, a-and we haven't even known e-each other for long."

"I'm honored, Hinata. I'm close friends with one of the gym leaders of Mosdeep!" Ino gushed. Sakura lightly punched Ino's arm.

Sakura stood up and suggested, "Why don't we have a little walk? The guys aren't back yet, and I think I could use some walking. I'm so stiff, and I don't know why. Want to join me, girls? Let's have some more girl time."

"I'm in. What about you, Hinata?" asked Ino. Hinata sat in thought for a while, and finally stood up. The three girls walked out of the Pokemon Center, and headed towards Route 110, which was the road that led to Mauville.

"U-Um, why are we w-walking to Route 110?" asked Hinata.

"Get your Pokemon ready, Hinata," warned Sakura.

"H-Huh? What are we d-doing here?" asked a clueless Hinata.

"When Sakura says 'walking', we interpret it as 'training'. Now, get out a couple of your Pokemon, Hinata," warned Ino.

"O-Okay," replied Hinata.

"Let's go, Jigglypuff, Bayleef!" called out Ino. Bayleef and Jigglypuff materialized in front of the trio.

"Cherubi, Combusken, take the stage!" shouted Sakura.

"Spoink, Kirlia, come on out!" said Hinata. The six Pokemon got ready to battle some wild Pokemon.

"Okay, let's split up now. Sakura, go left, Hinata, go straight, and I'll go right," suggested Ino. The other two nodded, but before they could run off, Kirlia sensed something.

"W-What is it, Kirlia?" asked Hinata. She kneeled down to soothe Kirlia, when she understood what Kirlia was saying. "Kirlia senses d-dark presences. S-She's warning us t-to be careful."

"Very clever, little girls," spoke a threatening voice. A sticky string of spider's web shot out at the three girls. All three of them dodged the attack. Sakon, Ukon, and Kidomaru showed themselves. "You dodged Ariados's String Shot. I congratulate you on your agility, girls," snickered Kidomaru.

"Combusken, Fire Spin!" commanded Sakura. Combusken blew out a column of fire towards Ariados, but the spider jumped, and dodged it.

"Kirlia, Spoink, Confusion," whispered Hinata. The two psychic Pokemon took control of Ariados, and flung the Pokemon into the trees.

"Dodrio, use Fury Attack," said Sakon and Ukon. Dodrio swiftly appeared behind Kirlia and Spoint, and started pecking them non-stop. The two psychic Pokemon lost their grip on Confusion, and let Ariados down.

"Bayleef use Razor Leaf, and Jigglypuff, Double-slap!" shouted Ino. Bayleef sent razor sharp leaves towards Dodrio while Jigglypuff ran to slap Ariados. The Razor Leaf attack hit Dodrio, but didn't affect it as much. Ariados used String Shot to wrap up Jigglypuff.

"Spoink, attack with Psybeam!" commanded Hinata. Spoint fired a multicolored ray of light towards Ariados and Dodrio. Ariados repelled it with Night Shade. "Use Psywave!" continued Hinata.

Spoink's body became outlined in blue energy, and it released blue energy rings towards Ariados. This time, it hit Ariados successfully. However, Dodrio snuck up behind Spoink and hit it with Peck. Kirlia got back at Dodrio by hitting it with Psychic.

Meanwhile, Sakura's Cherubi was attacking Ariados with Magical Leaf, along with Combusken using Double Kick on Dodrio. Ariados hit Cherubi with Poison Sting, and since it was a grass type, the attack was very effective, and Cherubi was poisoned.

"Cherubi, hang on," pleaded Sakura. She fumbled around in her fanny pack, looking for an antidote. She spotted a Pecha berry in her bag, so used that instead. Cherubi gradually recovered, and was ready to battle again. Combusken was wrapped in Ariados's String Shot attack, but Bayleef used Razor Leaf to cut the webs.

Hinata was trying to defeat her opponents, but they were fast, and powerful. _"What kind of a gym leader am I? Why am I so weak? Neji nii-san was right. I need more training. I promise, when I get back to Mosdeep, I will take nii-san's training seriously. I promise!"_ Hinata talked to herself mentally. Hinata shook her head, and reached inside her bag to take out her last Pokemon. Suddenly, there was a flash of light. Hinata looked at her Spoink, which was engulfed in white light. "It can't be," whispered the young Hyuuga.

"Spoink's evolving?" said Ino.

Spoink slowly grew bigger, and when the glowing disappeared, there was a Grumpig standing instead of a little Spoink. Hinata whispered, "You chose to evolve?" Grumpig nodded and turned back to its opponents.

"It's great that your Spoink evolved, girl, but will it help you? Ariados, Bug Bite," shouted Kidomaru. Ariados charged towards Grumpig to use Bug Bite, but Grumpig used Confusion on it instead.

"Why are you crooks back here?" asked Sakura. Her Cherubi used Magical Leaf on Ariados, and hit it successfully.

"Just to do a little examining in Mauville. I wonder how Akatsuki's doing, compared to us," answered Kidomaru. Sakura and Ino snuck inside their bags to call out all of their Pokemon when somebody stopped them.

"That's enough information, Kidomaru," said a voice above them. A Bonemerang attack hit all of the girls' Pokemon, sending them flying into some trees. Sakura, Hinata, and Ino looked up and saw another Team Sound member.

Sakura's eyes widened as she realized who he was. "You! You're the one I saw at Petalburg Forest."

Kimimaro snickered and said, "Bravo, girl. You remembered me. Sakon, Ukon, Kidomaru, what are you three doing, playing around with children? Do you want to get killed by Orochimaru-sama?"

"Sorry, Kimimaro. We just wanted to have some fun," answered Kidomaru.

"Well, play time's over. We have to get a move on," warned Kimimaro.

"Fine. Ariados, Night Shade!" commanded Kidomaru. Ariados fired a stream of black energy towards the three girls, blinding them. "We'll play with you later!" was their parting words.

"W-Who were they?" asked Hinata, once the Night Shade attack had worn off.

"Team Sound. I don't know what they're after. There's another team called Akatsuki. I really don't know why they're causing trouble. Naruto, Sasuke, and I had a little run in with some members of Akatsuki, and it wasn't pleasant. They're really tough," explained Sakura.

"Well, thankfully, we weren't killed here. Let's go back to the Pokemon Center. We can train later," suggested Ino.

"O-Okay," stammered Hinata. The girls returned their Pokemon to their Pokeballs and walked back to the Pokemon Center.

On the way back, Ino asked Hinata, "So do you have a dress for the contest?" Hinata nodded.

"Okay, good. I look forward to battling you in the contest, if we have a chance," said Ino.

"Me too. I've never battled against a gym leader before. I would like to battle you in the contest too," stated Sakura.

"I'm just a rookie, but I would want t-to fight you t-two as well," replied Hinata. The three girls walked to the Pokemon Center in silence after that. They saw a very serious looking Neji waiting for them at the Center.

"Hinata-sama, we have to get back to Mosdeep as soon as we can. The elders are waiting for us, and there are many people who want to challenge us," said Neji.

Hinata let out a deep breath and replied, "Neji nii-san, you can go to Mosdeep first. I-I-I would like to stay a-and participate in the E-Escargot Contest here." Then, she braced herself for the lecture that would come.

"Hinata-sama, what are you thinking?" asked Neji.

"It was actually us that registered Hinata in the contest, Hyuuga," defended Ino.

"Why did you do that without asking me first?" asked Neji.

"If we asked you, then you would never let Hinata compete. Please, Neji, just this once. Hinata wants to compete too, so you should let her compete," pleaded Sakura.

Neji ignored her and warned Hinata, "Hinata-sama, this contest will drag on for at least three days. I do not think the elders will appreciate you participating in some worthless contest."

Sakura snapped, "Would you just let Hinata do what **she** wants for once? It looks to me like she's trying her butt off to be the person you and your whole family wants her to be, but you're not giving her enough credit! Come on, Neji, just let her compete in this one contest."

Neji sighed and replied, "Fine. Hinata-sama, you should come home as soon as you can. I shall fight the challengers by myself for now. Prepare yourself for a harsh training session with the elders." Neji then walked out of the Pokemon Center.

"How's he going to get home?" asked Ino.

"H-He can use Teleport w-with Gallade. I-It's very effective," explained Hinata.

"Well, at least you can participate in the contest! Are you really excited now?" gushed Sakura.

"T-Thank you, Sakura and Ino. I'll never f-forget this contest! I-I'm really grateful," thanked Hinata.

"Hey girls, how was your day?" asked Naruto, who just came in the Pokemon Center. Sasuke was right behind him.

"Uh, not bad, I guess. Did you and Sasuke train together?" Sakura asked.

"Yep. I can't believe he got a cool new Pokemon! That Absol was really powerful," stated Naruto.

Sakura's eyes widened. "An Absol? I thought that Pokemon was dangerous!"

"It's just known as the Disaster Pokemon. Nothing's wrong with Absol," Sasuke reassured her. Sakura didn't look so sure about that. Her expression was one of fear. Naruto didn't understand why she would be scared of Absol.

"Hey, teme, why don't you show Absol to Sakura? If she sees it, maybe she won't think it's…" Naruto didn't have time to finish his sentence, since Sakura interrupted.

"N-No! It's okay. You don't need to show me Absol. I can manage." Sakura then smiled at her friends to show that she was okay, but they thought otherwise. Naruto quickly changed the subject.

"Hinata, you didn't go with Neji?" asked Naruto. Hinata shook her head slowly. "Why not?"

"Hinata will be entering the contest with us," Ino answered for her.

"That's great, Hinata! I didn't know you were a coordinator too," said Naruto.

"I-I'm not. I just wanted t-to take part in this c-contest," stammered Hinata.

"Well, as long as you're happy. Good luck to all three of you on the contest!" said Naruto, flashing a smile.

"Thanks," replied Sakura and Ino. Hinata just twiddled her fingers and blushed.

"Excuse me, is Naruto Uzumaki here?" asked Nurse Shizune.

"That's me!" exclaimed Naruto, jumping up.

"There's a phone call for you, from your mother," said Shizune.

"Mom? What's she up to?" mumbled the blond teen.

Naruto walked over to the phone and picked up. "Mom, what's up?" he asked.

"Naruto, I heard there was a contest in Mauville City. Is Sakura-san participating?" asked Kushina.

"Yeah, and so are a few other people I know. Why?" Naruto asked back.

"Oh, nothing. I'm just curious. How're you doing? Have you gotten any new Pokemon? I hope you haven't been a burden to your team mates," rambled Kushina.

"I'm doing just fine. I already got two badges! It won't be long until I get my third one. You don't need to worry about me too much, Mom. I'm old enough to survive on my own, dattebayo!" Naruto declared with his grin. Kushina smiled back at him and gave him a thumbs up.

"Good luck on your journey, Naruto! Say hi to your friends for me too!" Kushina waved good-bye then hung up.

"Your mom's really pretty," commented Ino. A surprised Naruto jumped and had a hand on his chest.

"Ino, you could warn me that you were behind me," Naruto said. Sakura and Hinata popped up from behind Ino as well.

"You and Kushina are so similar, Naruto. Both of you have similar smiles, and both of you are happy-go-lucky," commented Sakura. Hinata stayed quiet.

"Well, she **is** my mom. Sakura, Hinata, Ino, don't you three need to go to the contest arena to get settled in your dorms?" asked Naruto.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about the dorms. Sakura, Hinata, let's go now!" declared Ino, as she grabbed Sakura and Hinata's hands and dragged them off.

"Who'll you be rooting for tomorrow?" asked TenTen, out of the blue.

"When did you get back, TenTen?" asked Naruto.

"A while ago. Now answer my question. I'm curious," pressed TenTen.

"I don't really know. I really want to cheer for Sakura-chan, but I don't want Ino, or Hinata, or you to lose either," mumbled Naruto.

"Well, it's nice to know that you don't want any of us entering to lose. I'm heading off to the dorms now. See ya' tomorrow, Naruto!" TenTen, then walked out of the Pokemon Center. Naruto saw a blur of pink, purple, and yellow dash out of the Pokemon Center after TenTen left.

The blond turned to Sasuke and suggested, "Sasuke, do you want to train some more?" Sasuke slightly grinned and walked out of the Pokemon Center as well. Naruto took that as a sign to continue, so he followed.

With the girls at the Contest Arena dorms

"Whoever suggested that the contest should be a beach side contest is a genius! Some of the dorms have beautiful views of the sea!" gushed TenTen.

"I take that you're a water fan?" asked Sakura.

"All the Pokemon I have now are water Pokemon. I love the water, like you said," continued TenTen.

"TenTen, you and I are roommates. I hope our room has a nice view of the sea!" squealed Ino. She and TenTen swung their bags on their shoulders and went to find their room.

"Well, let's go too, Hinata. You and I are roommates," said Sakura. The rosette took out a card from her fanny pack and went inside the building to find her room, with Hinata. _"I can't wait for tomorrow! I'm so psyched, but nervous too. I'll have to be careful of TenTen if I ever end up battling her. She seems to be a tough girl. I also need to watch out for Karin. She was a tough opponent, herself. Okay, Sakura. You can do this. Focus!"_ Sakura mentally told herself.

Sakura opened the door to her and Hinata's room, and her jaw dropped. The room was huge! There were two single beds and between them was a bedside table with a lamp. There was an enormous window that allowed them to see a great view of the sea.

Hinata opened the bathroom door, and saw that there was a bathtub, and a separate shower. There was also an intricately carved sink with a huge, shining mirror above it, not to mention one toilet.

"This is just too grand. It must have cost a fortune to build this whole building!" exclaimed Sakura.

"My family a-actually gave some money f-for this building," admitted Hinata.

"Wow, I see. This is so cool! I can't believe we get to spend three days here!" squealed Sakura. She lied down on the bed and sighed. "The bed's really comfortable too." Suddenly, the door slammed open, and Ino and TenTen waltzed in. "Ino! How did you know our room?"

"A nice staff man told me. We're only two rooms apart. I love this place! Our room has a seaside view too!" said Ino, excitedly. She pointed at Sakura and continued, "This time, the Escargot Ribbon's mine, Billboard Brow. Your first win was just beginners' luck. I'm going to beat you this time."

Sakura grinned and retorted, "You're on, Ino-pig. I'll definitely not lose this time either. I'll prove to you that it wasn't just beginners' luck."

"You all should get some rest. Tomorrow is the appeals round. I may have a hard time on that one. I'm not really good at the appeals section," said TenTen, sheepishly. "Hinata, this is your first time, isn't it?"

"U-Um, yes. I hope I can put up a-a good show," stammered Hinata.

"You two will do fine! Don't worry too much. I was really nervous during my first contest, but I got through the first round. You'll be okay," assured Sakura, patting TenTen and Hinata's backs.

"Thanks. I'm going to go outside and train. Bye, girls." TenTen strolled out of the room. Ino followed suit.

"Hinata, why don't you and I train together? I can help you if you want," offered Sakura.

"Thank you, Sakura. I-I appreciate it," replied Hinata. Hinata went out of the room first. Sakura was about to follow Hinata, when she saw a blue spot outside. Curious, Sakura walked over to the window and searched for the person. Her eyes widened when she saw Konan at the beach.

"_Is she going to enter too? She's too tough! No, I can't get de-motivated. Chin up, Sakura!"_ the rosette encouraged herself. She ran out of the room, locking the door behind her.

Sakura and Hinata

"Oh, there you are, Hinata. Sorry I lagged behind," apologized Sakura.

"There's n-no need to apologize, Sakura. I-I just appreciate you helping me o-out," said Hinata.

"Okay. Hinata, which Pokemon do you plan to use for the appeals round?" asked Sakura.

"I-I'm thinking of using Grumpig for the appeals. Then I'll use m-my Grumpig and my other two Pokemon i-in the battle round," said Hinata.

"Alright then. Can you show me an appeal with your Grumpig right now?" asked Sakura. Hinata nodded. First, she took out her Pokeball and a ball capsule. Then, she put the Pokeball inside the capsule, and stuck a heart seal on the capsule.

"Grumpig, you're up!" said Hinata, not stuttering. Grumpig somersaulted in the air as small hearts spread out around it. It bounced on its tail once, then landed on its feet. "Use Hidden Power!" commanded Hinata. Grumpig summoned lots of small energy balls, and made a ring with them around itself.

"Now, Confusion," said Hinata. Grumpig used the energy balls to create a pillar that concealed it. "Psywave!" Grumpig unleashed rings of energy to the sky. The rings could be seen, glowing, from the outside, as well as Grumpig's eyes and black pearls. "Finish with Psychic!" Grumpig spun on its tail, and unleashed a wave of psychic energy to destroy the energy pillar. Hinata and Grumpig bowed after their appeal.

Sakura gaped at Hinata's appeal. "That… was… awesome, Hinata! You performed like you were a pro!" praised Sakura.

Hinata lightly blushed and said, "Thank you S-Sakura, but tomorrow, it'll b-be the real thing. Do you think m-my appeal will get me t-to the second round?"

"No doubt you'll get to the second round if you put up another show like this one. You're like a natural at this, Hinata. The battle round may be easier for you since you're a Gym Leader, but don't forget that beauty counts. Don't let your Pokemon miss a lot of attacks either. You're good to go! I think you're even better than me," rambled Sakura.

"I-I'm just a rookie coordinator, and this is my first contest. I don't deserve such high praise," whispered Hinata.

"Nonsense, Hinata! You're really good! You'll make it to the second round for sure! You also commanded your Grumpig without stuttering, and that's great!" gushed Sakura. "Can I train with you for the battle round?" the rosette asked, changing the subject. Hinata blinked a few times, then nodded.

The Hyuuga asked, "Do you want t-to go up against K-Kirlia?"

"Any Pokemon is okay, Hinata. I want to let my Cherubi get used to battling," said Sakura.

Hinata reminded, "Psychic Pokemon have a-an advantage o-over grass types. A-Are you sure you w-want your Cherubi t-to fight Kirlia?" Sakura nodded, with a determined look in her eyes.

"I need Cherubi to get stronger, so if I battle your psychic Pokemon, it will be more aware of the advantages and disadvantages, right?" said Sakura. Hinata just nodded and took out another Pokeball. She returned Grumpig to its Pokeball. Hinata put Kirlia's Pokeball in a capsule as well, and stuck a seal on it.

"Hinata, you're already sticking seals on your capsules?" asked Sakura.

Hinata got ready to call out Kirlia. "Y-Yes. I want them t-to get used to it. Now, Kirlia, you're on!" Kirlia twirled in the air, as yellow music notes surrounded her. She landed lightly on the ground, and sent a determined look towards Sakura.

Sakura took out her Pokeball and put it in a capsule, and stuck a seal on it as well. "Cherubi, the stage is yours!" Cherubi floated in the air for a while, as pink petals came out of the Pokeball with it. Then, the grass type Pokemon landed.

"Kirlia, Double Team," said Hinata. Kirlia created copies of herself and surrounded Cherubi. Cherubi frantically looked at all the Kirlia clones.

"Use Stun Spore," commanded Sakura. Cherubi spun and released some spores, which hit all the Kirlias.

"Kirlia, now! Psychic!" said Hinata. All the Kirlia clones disappeared, but the real one wasn't among them. Suddenly, Cherubi was hit with a wave of psychic energy from above.

Sakura looked up and saw Kirlia floating in the air. _"When did Kirlia get up there? I can't give up now,"_ a determined Sakura thought. "Cherubi, Sunny Day!" Cherubi sent a ball of energy towards the sun, making it shine brighter. Kirlia was blinded by the sun, and tried to shield her eyes. "Use Mega Drain!" Cherubi sent a spiraling column of energy towards Kirlia, and surrounded her. Kirlia was then drained of her energy, which interrupted her levitation, and sent her hurling to the ground.

"Kirlia, get your concentration back. Confusion!" commanded Hinata. Kirlia suddenly opened her eyes and, just before she hit the ground, used Confusion to float for a while, then land lightly. "Use a combination of Confusion and Psychic."

Using Confusion, Kirlia lifted Cherubi into the air, and unleashed a wave of psychic energy towards it. Cherubi was hit critically, since it couldn't do anything against Psychic. The small Pokemon was sent flying.

"Sakura, I-I think we should stop," suggested Hinata.

"I knew you were really strong, Hinata! No wonder you're a gym leader!" praised Sakura. Hinata was stunned. She thought Sakura would be a little mad at her for beating up her Cherubi, but she wasn't.

"Y-You're not a-angry with me f-for injuring your C-Cherubi?" asked Hinata.

Sakura shook her head. "Why would I be angry, Hinata? Battles are supposed to be like this. I know that you're a gym leader too, so, I expected you to be pretty strong." Sakura returned Cherubi to its Pokeball and put it away. "I'm going to go back to the room. Are you coming?" Hinata nodded. She and Sakura walked back to the building.

At night, when Hinata had already fallen asleep, Sakura lay on the bed, deep in thought. She got up, reached for her bag, and dumped all her Pokeballs on her bed. Then, she picked up Cherubi's Pokeball. _"I wonder if you're going to be okay tomorrow," _wondered the rosette. She gathered all her Pokeballs in her hands and looked intently at every one of them.

"You all have been great companions, and I appreciate it. We have been training in our free time, and I hope you all are ready for tomorrow. I know I am!" whispered Sakura. She looked at the Pokeballs as if anticipating a response from them. The rosette sighed and got out of bed. She took her Pokeballs with her. Sakura walked out of the building and to the seaside.

"Come on out, guys," said Sakura, as she threw all her Pokeballs in the air. All her Pokemon materialized in front of her, looking sleepy. "Hey, are you all ready for tomorrow? It'll be our second ribbon if we win it," she whispered. All her Pokemon uttered sounds that showed they were ready.

"I knew you would enter this contest too." Sakura became alert, and frantically searched around her to see who it was. Out of the blue, Konan appeared. Sakura jumped in surprise, but calmed herself a little later.

"Konan? Are you entering too?" asked Sakura, suddenly becoming nervous.

The blue headed woman shook her head. "Not this time. I don't have time to enter a lot of contests. I would have liked to go up against you again, though."

"Oh, I see. Why are you here then?" Sakura asked.

"I just wanted to watch as much of this contest as I can. The legendary coordinator, Tsunade, acts as a judge in many contests, but this is a much newer contest, and it drags on for three days, so I'm surprised that she's here," answered Konan.

"I heard Tsunade-sama was going to be here too. No one could talk with her after contests, since she disappears so quickly. I wanted to have a chance to talk to her, since this is a three day contest," said Sakura.

"You're here to relax too aren't you; to ease your tension?" asked Konan. Sakura slowly nodded. "The seaside is a great place to relax. The breeze is cool, and the ocean just calls out to you. Setting up this contest at the beach was a great idea, don't you think?"

"Yeah. Somehow, I feel better after talking to you, Konan. I don't know why. Even though you're from Akatsuki, you seem like a really nice person; a motherly figure," rambled Sakura.

"You interest me, Sakura; your determination as well as love for your Pokemon. Your other two team mates are intriguing in their own ways as well," praised Konan.

Sakura lightly blushed at Konan's praise. "Being praised by a great coordinator like you is an honor, Konan."

Konan walked towards Sakura's Pokemon and kneeled down. "Your Pokemon are all well trained and raised. Do you mind if I give them some custom made Pokeblocks?" Sakura shook her head. Konan fished out a small contraption from her cloak and opened it. She gave each one of Sakura's Pokemon a different Pokeblock.

All the Pokemon ate the Pokeblocks and looked more energized. Sakura was a little surprised. Konan faced her and said, "Don't look surprised. All coordinators should know that feeding Pokeblocks to their Pokemon is healthy. I'll give you a Pokeblock case so that you can make your own Pokeblocks for your Pokemon." She handed Sakura the little contraption that she fished out.

Before Sakura could say anything, or thank her, Konan patted the rosette's head and said, "I have to go now. Good luck tomorrow. I'll be watching from the sidelines." As fast as she came, Konan disappeared mysteriously. Sakura looked around for her, but couldn't find her anywhere. Somehow, she felt calmer. Sakura returned all her Pokemon to their Pokeballs and headed back to her room. When she laid her head on her pillow, she went to sleep immediately.

* * *

"Sakura, S-Sakura, wake up. I-It's time," muttered Hinata, shaking Sakura awake. The rosette fluttered her eyelids open and groaned.

"Can't I sleep more, Hinata?" asked Sakura, groaning into her pillow.

"N-No, you musn't, S-Sakura. W-We can't be late!" said Hinata, frantically. The rosette sat up in bed, and groggily walked to the bathroom to get ready. Hinata was already dressed up. The young Hyuuga was wearing a light purple, strapless gown, that starts with satin flowing down the dress, until it's lifted by a rose detail to show flowing chiffon at the feet. The dress outlined her curves in all the right places.

After Sakura washed her face, she became more alert. The rosette ran to her bed to get her Poketch and checked the time. Her eyes widened and she immediately got out her dress and ran into the bathroom to change.

Hinata complimented Sakura when she came out of the bathroom. "Y-Your dress really suits y-you, Sakura."

Sakura lightly touched the red headband she was wearing to adjust it and replied, "Thanks Hinata. Your dress looks good on you too. Let's go. Like you said, I really don't want to be late." The two girls rushed downstairs to the contest arena.

When they got to the contestants' lounge, they gaped at all the other contestants who were there. It looked like there were hundreds of people participating in the event. "This is almost like the Grand Festival," mumbled Sakura. Hinata agreed, one hundred percent.

"Sakura, Hinata, over here!" called Ino. She was dressed in her new gown and was waving vigorously at Hinata and Sakura. The two girls walked over to Ino. Ino looked dazzling in her new dress.

"I-Ino, you look really p-pretty," complimented Hinata.

Ino slapped Hinata's back and replied, "Thanks Hinata. Your dress looks awesome too. Here comes TenTen now. Even though she's not wearing a dress, suits go well with her as well." TenTen came running towards them. She was wearing

"Hey, TenTen! You look great in a suit. Dresses aren't your thing?" asked Sakura.

"Nope. I prefer tomboyish suits, thank you," replied TenTen.

Ino interrupted, "Hey girls, there's Tsunami! The appeals round is starting!"

All the contestants watched as Tsunami ran up on stage and introduced herself. "Good morning everyone! I hope you all are ready for a great, and long, contest!" Her introduction was followed by cheers from the audience. The camera swept across the audience once to show that it was a full house. The seats were all filled, and the stadium was jam packed.

"Today, all the contestants will be showing off their Pokemon in the appeals round, and sixteen lucky competitors will go on to the second round! Even though she's a judge in other contests, she came all the way to Mauville City to judge in a much newer, and lengthier contest. She's also a legendary coordinator; ladies and gentlemen, welcome Tsunade-sama! " announced Tsunami. The crowd erupted in cheers and applause. Tsunade stood up and waved at everyone. The camera got a close up of her so that the coordinators in the lounge could see her.

"Tsunade-sama is my idol. I really look up to her!" gushed TenTen. The other three girls sighed. They already knew TenTen was a huge fan of Tsunade.

Tsunami continued, "Now, let's welcome our other two judges!" As Tsunami kept talking, Sakura started to tense slightly. She started to shake slightly.

Ino noticed this and whispered, "Hey, come on, Billboard Brow. You can't get nervous this easily. This isn't your first contest. Chin up! You'll do great." Sakura smiled at her friend's encouragement. She looked at the screen once more to see a person already performing.

A few more people went, and after that, Tsunami announced, "Let's welcome our next contestant, one of the gym leaders of Mosdeep City, Hinata Hyuuga!" Hinata let out a deep breath and rushed outside.

"Good luck, Hinata!" the other three girls shouted. Hinata turned her head and smiled at them, then she kept running outside. The girls turned back to the screen to see Hinata appear.

* * *

In the audience, Naruto was shouting, "Whoo! Hinata, go for it!" The purple haired girl seemed to have noticed his voice, since she searched the audience for him. In the audience, Naruto grinned. He seemed pretty happy to be watching this contest.

"Hello, Naruto. It's nice to see you here," greeted a female voice. Naruto turned around to see…

"MOM? What are you doing here?" Naruto almost fell off his seat. Sasuke, who was sitting beside him, sighed, "Idiot."

Kushina smiled. "I just wanted to see Sakura-san's performance, live. It's not a crime, is it? Sorry if I almost gave you a heart attack." Naruto climbed back on his seat and smiled at his mom. Kushina returned the smile as well.

On stage, Hinata closed her eyes and concentrated. She opened them, and threw out her Pokeball, encased with its capsule. "Grumpig, go for it!" Her Grumpig somersaulted in the air, bounced on its tail once, and landed lightly on its feet. Hearts swirled around it as it made its entrance. "Use Bounce!" commanded Hinata.

Grumpig bounced around, all over the stage. The audience was glued to the graceful movements it was making in the air. "Hidden Power!" Grumpig summoned many small energy balls in a line. As it bounced around, it danced with the line of energy balls as a ribbon. Grumpig used Confusion to keep them all together.

Kushina commented, "That Grumpig must be concentrating a lot. Using Confusion to hold the Hidden Power energy balls together, **and** using Bounce is hard for a Pokemon to do. That girl sure lives up to the name of Mosdeep's Gym Leader." Naruto looked at his mom and wondered how she became so observant. She wasn't like that at home. The blond boy shook it off though.

"Finish it with Iron Tail," said Hinata. Grumpig bounced high in the air once, twirling as it did so, and spiraling the energy ribbon around it. Then, it threw the energy ribbon away, and used Iron Tail to destroy it. Grumpig, then, lightly landed on its feet, sparks of energy showering it and Hinata. The two of them bowed and ran off stage.

"Will you look at how well trained that Grumpig is, ladies and gentlemen? What can we expect from Mosdeep's gym leader? Let's see what the judges think!" said Tsunami.

"The way Grumpig was bouncing around reminds me of a gymnast. My eyes are glued to it!" commented Nurse Shizune.

"That Pokemon really knows how to dance. As expected from the gym leader of Mosdeep," said Anko.

"I know it's Hinata Hyuuga's first time in a contest, but she handled it really well. Her Pokemon is very well trained as well," said Tsunade.

"There you have it, ladies and gentlemen. Now, let's welcome our next coordinator!" announced Tsunade.

* * *

Back at the contestants' lounge, Sakura, Ino, and TenTen all tackled Hinata when she got back. "Hinata, you did great!" praised Sakura.

"Your Grumpig could hold three attacks at the same time! That's hard to do!" exclaimed Ino.

"Neji may look down on you, but you're certainly strong in your own way. You didn't stutter at all up there either! Great job on that," commented TenTen.

Hinata blushed and replied, "T-Thank you, girls. I'll be cheering f-for you three now."

A couple more entrants performed their appeals. Then, it was Ino's turn. "Good luck out there, Ino," said Sakura. Ino gave her a thumbs up and ran out to the stage.

" Jigglypuff, you're up!" shouted Ino, throwing her Pokeball. As Jigglypuff floated down, multi-colored confetti rained down on it. "Safeguard, then sing," commanded Ino.

Jigglypuff became outlined in blue, opened its mouth and started to sing a beautiful lullaby. It also released colorful musical notes from its mouth. "Folks, Jigglypuff is not only appeasing our ears, but our eyes too. Look at the glow of that Safeguard! Even the notes are outlined in blue!" commented Tsunami. The musical notes were floating around, as Jigglypuff kept singing and using Safeguard.

"Now, Ice Beam!" shouted Ino. Jigglypuff abruptly stopped singing, and spun around, releasing beams of ice from its mouth. The Ice Beam attack froze all the musical notes, but they still had the blue glow to them. "Wow, the notes look beautiful encased in that ice!" commented Tsunami.

"Finish with Thunderbolt," said Ino. Jigglypuff spun on its feet and released bolts of electricity, shattering every one of the ice-encased musical notes. Jigglypuff, then, stopped spinning, and posed cutely, winking at the audience, as sparks of electricity and small, sparkling, shards of ice came raining down on it and Ino. The audience erupted into cheers.

"Thunderbolt is only supposed to release **one** bolt of lightening, but Jigglypuff's spinning multiplied the amount of lightening bolts released! Ladies and gentlemen, that was one wonderful appeal! Let's ask what the judges thought," said Tsunami.

"That appeal was so great! The abrupt change from listening calmly to being drawn in by the colorful moves was really effective," commented Nurse Shizune.

"That Jigglypuff is hardcore! It must have taken a lot of time to learn those electric and ice type moves," said Anko.

"Ino has trained her Jigglypuff well, like Anko said. I enjoyed her performance," commented Tsunade.

"Now that the judges have commented, let's go on!" said Tsunami.

* * *

"Ino, your Jigglypuff knows electric and ice type moves? That's so cool! You can teach moves to Pokemon, right?" asked Sakura.

"Only certain types that the Pokemon can handle. Wild Pokemon that have learned moves that don't suit their types appear too. Jigglypuff knew Thunderbolt when I first met it. Thanks for the compliment, by the way, Sakura. You're going after a few more performances, aren't you?" asked Ino.

"Yeah. The last entry's TenTen. I hope I can put up a good show," mumbled Sakura.

"You'll do fine. Just cool it," suggested TenTen, slapping Sakura's back. After some performances, Sakura got ready to go. She fixed her headband and checked her Pokeball. Then, she ran out.

On stage, Tsunami was already introducing the next contestant, Sakura. Sakura walked out on stage and threw her Pokeball. "Cherubi, the stage is yours!" she exclaimed. Cherry blossom petals appeared first, then got together to form a large cherry blossom. Then, the flower dispersed, and Cherubi appeared.

"Cherubi, use Sunny Day," said Sakura. Cherubi formed two bright balls of light, and sent them up. They collided with each other, producing a blinding light. "Now use Magical Leaf." Cherubi flipped a lot of times and released a lot of glowing yellow-green leaves from its body. The leaves flew up to the glowing ball of light, and encircled it.

"This looks a lot like the planet Saturn, doesn't it? The blinding ball of light being surrounded by glowing leaves. Not to mention the leaves are coloring the ball of light green and yellow!" announced Tsunami, shielding her eyes from the bright light.

"Cherubi, Bullet Seed!" exclaimed Sakura. Cherubi released multiple, glowing, yellow seeds towards the ball of light. The seeds destroyed the ball of light, but both the seeds and leaves fell with a very shiny glow to them. The audience cheered once again.

"Isn't that a dazzling sight? What do our judges think?" asked Tsunami.

"It really is a dazzling sight. I liked how she used fire and grass moves to show off Cherubi's attacks," said Nurse Shizune.

"The girl has talent. I've heard Cherubi don't have a lot of moves that are very 'dazzling'. She picked good moves and put them to good use," commented Anko.

Tsunade sat in thought for a while. Then, she said, "Sakura has done a good job of using Cherubi's moves to show it off. I do think she could've done better. From what I saw, she has talent. I've watched her since her debut, and I do think she's improved." Sakura smiled politely and bowed. Then, she took her leave.

"Well, thank you, judges. Let's move on to our next contestant!" shouted Tsunami. As the performances went on, the Sakura chatted with her friends for a while. Soon, it was the last entry, which was TenTen's. The Chinese girl rushed on stage, ready for some action.

"Go, Staryu!" shouted TenTen. Staryu appeared, accompanied by a lot of bubbles. "Use Rapid Spin, then Swift!" Staryu spun and sprayed bubbles. Since it was spinning, and traveling around in the air, it left rings of stars all over.

"Bubblebeam, then Surf!" said TenTen. Staryu kept spinning, but it blew out bubbles this time. The bubbles encased the stars. Then, Staryu stopped spinning, glowed blue, and created a huge wave, which engulfed the bubbles and stars. Staryu dove in the wave as well, swimming towards the bubble encased stars.

"Those stars from the Swift attack look brilliant in the water! Staryu looks just like the other stars in the water. What a way to show off its unique appearance," said Tsunami.

Suddenly, the stars vanished, the bubbles popped, and the wave dispersed. Staryu landed in front of TenTen and posed victoriously. The crowd cheered for her loudly as well. "Now wasn't that an interesting appeal? What do you think, judges?" asked Tsunami.

"This appeal does show off Staryu's unique traits. For a girl who's more interested in battles, this is a really good appeal!" praised Nurse Shizune.

"She looks like a tough girl. I like her style," said Anko.

"She has done a great job on the appeal. I'm sure she could have done more to improve it, but nevertheless, her appeal was still really good," commented Tsunade.

"Well, now that we've heard from the judges, we're done with the appeals round! Please wait patiently for the results of this round to come out!" announced Tsunami.

* * *

"Mom, don't you think the girls are putting up a good show?" asked Naruto, who was anxiously waiting for the results of the appeals round.

"They're all pretty good in their own way. Hinata looked confident, but shy and nervous at the same time. I can tell TenTen's a tough girl, and so are Sakura and Ino. Is Cherubi a brand new Pokemon that Sakura got?" asked Kushina.

"Yeah, she just caught it on our way to Mauville," answered Naruto.

"I see. Well, her performance wasn't bad. It was actually good, considering the fact that Cherubi's new on her team. I really admire Ino's Jigglypuff. It has cute looks, but tough attacks," ranted Kushina.

Tsunami suddenly announce, "Ladies and gentlemen, the judges have all talked it over, and these sixteen contestants will be the ones to go on to the next round!" Sixteen pictures appeared on the huge screen behind Tsunami and the judges. Naruto frantically scanned the pictures.

The blond spotted Ino first. "Ino's in," he mumbled. He kept going and said, "So is Hinata. Then, Sakura, and TenTen. They're all in! They all made it! I knew they could do it, -ttebayo!" Naruto hugged his mom, bursting with excitement. Sasuke smirked and leaned back on his chair, resuming his 'cool' pose.

The girls were jumping up and down, back in the lounge as well. "All of us made it! We all made it!" squealed Ino.

"_All of us and an extra person. Karin made it too. She's going to be tough to beat. She must have gotten much stronger,"_ thought Sakura.

The girls turned their attention back on the screen. Tsunami said, "Now, these sixteen contestants will be randomly shuffled, and will be facing off against each other." The pictures turned over, like cards, and they were shuffled. Once they were all shuffled, the pictures were revealed again. There were two rows of contestants who were to face off against each other. In the first row were Sakura and Ino, while TenTen, Hinata, and Karin were in the second row. Thankfully, none of them has to face off against each other, yet.

"It looks like my match is second," said Sakura.

"Mine's right after yours, Sakura," continued Ino.

"T-TenTen, I have to f-fight against you i-if we both win our first m-match," pointed out Hinata.

"I won't go easy on you, Hinata," promised TenTen.

Tsunami announced, "Tomorrow, we will hold these matches right here, in this arena. Contestants and spectators, have a great day! We hope to see you again tomorrow!"

* * *

All four girls had changed into their casual clothes, and were greeted by Naruto and Sasuke at the entrance. "So what did you think?" asked Ino.

"All of you were great! I'm glad you all made it in the next round!" congratulated Naruto. Sasuke didn't even utter a word.

"Once we face off against each other, who'll you two cheer for?" asked Sakura, teasingly. Naruto started fumbling around.

"Uh, well, um, I-I'll just cheer for both sides?" he answered.

Sakura lightly punched his head and said, "Naruto's still Naruto. You're a great friend." She turned to Sasuke and continued, "Well, Sasuke-kun, I need your opinion too."

"Hn, to be honest, you could do a better appeal than that. It may be the lack of attacks Cherubi has, but you can certainly put up a better appeal. Today's performance was a little rusty," commented Sasuke.

"Well, thanks for telling me what you think, Sasuke-kun," thanked Sakura.

"Sorry to interrupt you two lovebirds, but we're heading back now," shouted TenTen, who was already walking away with Ino and Hinata.

"Hey! Come on, TenTen!" Sakura shouted back. She ran and caught up to her, Ino, and Hinata. Naruto and Sasuke still stood where they were.

"Teme, are you up for some training?" challenged Naruto.

Sasuke smirked his infamous smirk and answered, "I thought you'd never ask." The two boys searched for a place where they could train some more.

Sakura was laughing along with her friends, but when she looked back, she said Naruto and Sasuke rush off somewhere. _"They're probably going to train again. I hope they're not overworking their Pokemon. Sasuk-kun may be more laid back than Naruto, but he sure gets fired up when it comes to fights and getting stronger,"_ thought Sakura.

* * *

**Okay, I wanted to fit all the appeals in once chapter, so it turned out to be a really long chapter. I wanted Tsunade to criticize a little bit more, so I did. The next chapter will be the battles. Oh, if you're wondering where Kushina went after the girls came out, she already took off to the Pokemon Center. Please review! More constructive criticism is welcome. I feel like I really need to improve on my writing. **


	20. Battle On!

**Thank you to the people who reviewed! By the way, I don't know if I've mentioned this before, but I got the idea for the Escargot Contest from the Wallace Cup. Wallace is a top coordinator, and so is Tsunade, in my story. Escargot means snail in French (according to the translator), so I named it the Escargot Contest. I don't know what slug is called in French, so I used snail instead. Enjoy this chapter!**

_**Please read!**_** An anonymous reviewer said that some author stole this story, but I can't find that author on fanfiction using the author search. I don't know if the review was a joke or something, but can you guys help me out? You can go to the reviews page to see what the anonymous reviewer wrote.**

**

* * *

****Battle On**

"_I do think she could've done better."_ Tsunade's words echoed in Sakura's head. The rosette tossed and turned in bed, hoping that she wasn't disturbing her roommate, Hinata. She thought about her newly caught Cherubi. _"Can it do better? Will it be able to improve?"_ Those thoughts made her mind restless.

"_Cherubi's new, but she seems to be a little, dare I say it, weaker than the others? No, I can't say things like that! Cherubi just needs more time for training. Yeah, that's it,"_ Sakura had a mental debate with herself. She put down Cherubi's Pokeball with her other Pokeballs, and tried to go to sleep. This time, she gave in to her slumber.

The next day

The pictures of the contestants going on to the second round were shown on the huge screen behind Tsunami. "All right, everyone, I hope you all are ready to see what our contestants have in store for us! Let's get started, shall we?" Tsunami shouted.

Sakura was clenching and unclenching her hands as she watched the first round. Ino slapped her back and said, "Hey Sakura, you're ready right? Don't tell me you're still nervous." Sakura grinned weakly at Ino.

"My match is the second one, Ino. I'm trying to calm myself," replied Sakura.

The blond girl said, "Well, my match is right after yours. Make sure you win your first match, Billboard Brow." She ruffled Sakura's hair and walked away. The rosette tried to smooth out her hair again. The first match was over in a couple of minutes. It was Sakura's turn now.

"Good luck, Sakura. We'll be cheering for you," motivated TenTen. Sakura smiled at her supporters and rushed out on stage.

In the audience, Naruto was fidgeting. Sasuke, meanwhile, was getting tired to Naruto's restlessness. "Can you be still for one minute?" Sasuke hissed.

"It's Sakura-chan's first battle, teme. She **has **to win this one, she has to!" Naruto became more agitated every moment.

Kushina laid her hand on her son's shoulder. "You don't have to worry about Sakura so much, Naruto. I'm sure she'll do fine. Look, there she is!"

Sakura stood, looking confident. Her opponent, who was a young boy about the same age as her, with chocolate brown eyes and sleek blond hair, looked just as ready as is. "We have five minutes on the clock. It's Sakura versus Hiroshi. Ready? Go!" Tsunami announced.

"Eevee, the stage is yours!" Eevee popped out of her Pokeball gracefully, with confetti surrounding her.

"Poliwhirl, you're up!" Sakura's opponent called out his Poliwhirl, which popped out with lots of purple bubbles accompanying him.

Sakura prepared to launch her first attack.

* * *

In the audience, Naruto was watching in anticipation. He could barely sit still, and his hands were clenching and unclenching every now and then.

"Naruto, Sakura's going to be okay. You don't have to be so troubled," comforted Kushina.

Naruto whipped his head around to face his mom. "If she doesn't win this one, it's over for her!"

Kushina patted his head and said, "I know, Naruto, I know. Oh, that was a great attack!" Naruto faced the stage again. Sakura's Eevee had used Quick Attack to dodge the attack that the Poliwhirl had launched. Eevee, who was bouncing around on stage, dodging the bubblebeam attack, had left blazing trails of white light all around the arena. Once she was high in the air, she ended her Quick Attack, and launched a two Shadow Balls toward Poliwhirl.

"Sakura sure looks confident out there," commented Kushina. She patted Naruto's hand to ease his nervousness. "It looks like you're more nervous than she is, Naruto."

"Just relax and watch, will you? She'll make it through," said an irritated Sasuke.

To Sasuke, he said, "Shut it, teme." To Sakura, he shouted, "Sakura-chan, you can do it! You only have fifty seconds left!"

Naruto's voice seemed to carry through the crowd and reach Sakura. Momentarily, her eyes shifted to her blond friend. She gave a small smile. Sakura was leading at the moment. "Eevee, let's finish up. Make a Shadow Ball." Eevee created a dark Shadow Ball and launched it towards Poliwhirl.

"Poliwhirl, destroy it with Focus Punch." Poliwhirl's fists glowed white and it destroyed the Shadow Ball with one punch. The only drawback to the attack was that the Shadow Ball spread out, instead of disappearing completely.

"Double Team, then Iron Tail," commanded Sakura. Poliwhirl was taken by surprise, as five Eevees came running at him. All five of them somersaulted once, then hit Poliwhirl right on the head with their tails. Poliwhirl staggered, then fell. The copies of Eevee vanished, and the real Eevee smiled victoriously.

The buzzer sounded then. "Time's up!" Tsunami stated. "The winner of this round is Sakura Haruno!" Eevee ran towards Sakura, and the rosette kneeled down to hug her.

"Eevee, you did a great job. I'll let you get some rest when we get back," said Sakura, soothingly. Eevee nuzzled her head against Sakura's neck. The rosette stood up, still holding Eevee, and went off stage.

Naruto sighed heavily, relieved that Sakura had won. "See?" Kushina said. "Sakura got through her first match just fine."

"Yeah, but sometimes, it's the first try that kills," replied Naruto.

* * *

"Looks like you survived, Sakura," said Ino.

"You're up next, pig. Go for it," said Sakura, ignoring Ino's first comment. She returned Eevee to her Pokeball. "You'd better win too."

As Ino was walking out the door, she faced Sakura and grinned. "I **will** win, Billboard Brow. Wait and see."

"I'd like to see what Ino does next. She looks girly on the outside, but she's tough inside," commented TenTen.

"I've known Ino for years. When she says she's going to do something, she does it until she finishes it. I can feel her determination when she walked out that door," said Sakura.

"Hinata, you're doing okay, aren't you?" asked TenTen.

Hinata had her head bent. "I'm trying t-to learn more about contests a-as this competition goes o-on. I hope I'll g-get through my first match."

"I'm sure you'll do great. After all, you're a gym leader." Hinata lifted her head slightly when she heard Sakura's comment. The dark haired Hyuuga gave a small smile.

* * *

"This next match is between Ino and Hitomi. We have five minutes on the clock. Begin!" announced Tsunami.

"Make me proud Azumarill, go!" Ino threw a Pokeball decorated with a heart seal. Azumarill materialized in the air, accompanied by small pink hearts.

Ino's opponent, a tall girl with platinum blond hair and sparkling green eyes called out her Mawile, who stood, glaring at Ino's Azumarill.

"_Looks can really be deceiving with this Mawile. That Pokemon looks like it's ready to kill someone! I'll finish this match quickly. It's going to be hard, since Mawile's a steel type Pokemon."_ Ino thought of moves that could give her an advantage over Mawile's steel type status.

"If you're not going to attack, then I will. Mawile, use Vice Grip," commanded Hitomi. Mawile charged at Azumarill and opened her huge jaws, ready to bite the water Pokemon.

"Azumarill, stop it with Surf!" retaliated Ino. Azumarill cried out and quickly conjured a huge wave. Mawile stopped running and flinched as the wave crashed on her. Azumarill rode the wave, just like a surfer would. That docked some points off Hitomi. Ino smirked at her opponent. This match was going to get intense soon.

* * *

"Ino looks like she knows what she's doing," commented Kushina. "She's a childhood friend of Sakura's, right?"

Naruto nodded. "Those two are like sisters. Their personalities are really alike too." Naruto had calmed down after Sakura's match. He didn't worry about Ino as much. Mainly because she had been participating in contests longer than Sakura has.

"Naruto, I just noticed this now, but where's Sasuke?" asked Kushina. Alerted, Naruto looked around. The young Uchiha was nowhere to be seen.

"Maybe he went out. Sakura-chan's match **is **over now," said Naruto.

"He's very quick. I didn't even notice him slip out," mumbled Kushina.

* * *

"_What do girls see in contests, anyway? The battles are a little more interesting, but why do Pokemon have to show off their beauty? It's unnecessary."_ Sasuke had slipped out of the stadium unknowingly. He was now walking along the beach, hoping to run into some trainers who are willing to battle. Unfortunately, almost everyone was at the Escargot Cup, either watching or participating.

The dark haired boy sighed. He kicked a small pebble and sent it flying into the sea. All of a sudden, he heard faint noises. There were some trees that separated the beach from the city. In the shadows of those trees, Sasuke could see the silhouettes of a couple of people.

He walked closer to them, careful not to make any noise. He was soon in hearing range. "You know we have to get to the bottom before Akatsuki does," a female voice stated.

"Yeah, but how are we going to get a submarine that can withstand the deep sea pressure?" asked a male voice.

"_The bottom? The bottom of the sea? What do they need to get there for? What does Akatsuki have to do with it? Wait, a submarine? The incident at Slateport; a submarine was involved!" _Sasuke was so focused on recalling his memories that he didn't sense a Pokemon creeping up behind him.

Sasuke was suddenly attacked by a String Shot attack, which stuck him to the ground. "Well, what do we have here? An eavesdropper?" A girl with fiery red hair stood in front of Sasuke. The Uchiha forced himself to look up.

"You're the one at Petalburg Forest," he stated. Another person appeared behind the girl. He, strangely, had three pairs of arms, which creepily, makes him look like an insect.

"You remember me. I'm touched," snickered the red-head. "Since you're here, we should just shut you up."

The insect like man commanded, "Ariados, finish him." As Ariados was about to attack Sasuke, the Uchiha managed to get a random Pokeball and call out one of his Pokemon. Incidentally, that Pokemon was Houndour. Before Ariados could hurt Sasuke, Houndour jumped up and tackled the huge spider. Then, swiftly, the obedient Pokemon burned the sticky webs that held Sasuke down.

The young Uchiha scrambled to his feet and called out his other Pokemon. Sensing a battle, the red-head released her own Pokemon. Sasuke and his Pokemon were now surrounded by an Ariados, a Chimecho, a Loudred, and a Chatot.

"Chimecho, use Psychic. Loudred, Uproar, and Chatot, use Wing Attack," commanded the girl. All three of her Pokemon charged toward Sasuke's Pokemon in sync. The insect-like man's Ariados contributed by launching a Night Shade attack.

"Houndour use Flamethrower to cancel out the Night Shade, then use Bite. Grovyle use Bullet Seed. Sneasel…" Sasuke was interrupted by a loud Uproar attack. He blocked his ears with his hands as his Pokemon charged at their opponents.

Sneasel ran towards the Chimecho to attack it, but the Psychic attack just lifted Sneasel off the ground and threw it back. Grovyle covered for Sneasel by launching multiple seeds at Chimecho and Loudred. Unfortunately, the Chatot swiftly hit Grovyle with its Wing Attack. "Super effective," whispered the red-head, smirking. Houndour was doing a better job with Ariados. However, the Chimecho used a Double Edge attack on it, sending it flying into a tree.

"Sneasel use Ice Punch on Ariados," commanded Sasuke. Sneasel's claws became enveloped in white energy, and punched the huge spider, hard. The Ariados slid back, but was still able to stand. Chimecho had used its Yawn attack on Grovyle, making it go to sleep. Unable to battle, Grovyle was attacked by Chimecho's Psywave and Chatot's Fly attacks. Both the psychic and flying attacks were super effective against Grovyle.

Sasuke returned Grovyle to his Pokeball and continued to battle with Houndour and Sneasel. All of a sudden, Ariados scrambled up a nearby tree. Then, Loudred used Earthquake. Since Ariados was on a tree, and Chimecho and Chatot were levitating, the attack only affected Sneasel and Houndour.

"Ariados, use Poison Sting," said the six-armed man. Ariados shot multiple barbs of poison towards Sneasel and Houndour. Both Pokemon were now poisoned.

"Now, Chatot, use Sing," commaded the red haired girl. Chatot sung a beautiful lullaby which lulled Sasuke's two Pokemon to sleep. The red-head and her partner smirked victoriously. Sasuke was getting angrier by the minute. He pulled out one last Pokeball and released the Pokemon inside. "An Absol huh? You must have tried pretty hard to capture it. You have determination, kid," mumbled the red haired girl.

"Absol, use Razor Wind!" commanded Sasuke. Absol cried out in fury and launched a white crescent shaped mass of energy towards the two members' Pokemon.

"Use Light Screen, Chimecho," said the red-head. Said Pokemon put up a cube like barrier around all the Pokemon, reducing the attack power of the Razor Wind. "Chatot, use Peck. Chimecho, use Heal Bell."

"Ariados, String Shot." Ariados launched many sticky webs to keep Absol stuck in place, but the Disaster Pokemon was faster. He avoided the attack, only to get pecked by Chatot. Chimecho, on the other hand, was healing Team Sound's Pokemon.

"Absol, use Bite on Chatot now," said Sasuke. While Absol was still close to Chatot, he somersaulted behind the bird and bit him hard. Both Pokemon crashed down. "Now tackle the Ariados!" Absol swiftly changed his target and charged towards the huge spider.

Unfortunately for Ariados, he wasn't quick enough to avoid the attack. After Absol was done with Ariados, he turned to Chimecho, but the smaller Pokemon hit Absol with a Double Edge attack. Chatot managed to recover and used Screech to distract Absol. While Absol was frozen in place, Ariados managed to hit the Disaster Pokemon with his Night Shade attack.

Absol was knocked back. Then, quicker than the eye could follow, Chatot flew up to Absol and used Take Down. Out of nowhere, Loudred caught Absol and slammed him on the ground, and used his Stomp attack. Absol was being knocked around by the four Pokemon and soon, he was out cold.

"I'll give you some credit, kid. You put up a pretty good fight, considering the fact that you were outnumbered," said the older man. By now, Sasuke was kneeling on the ground.

The red haired female advanced toward Sasuke and kneeled down as well. She told him, "You have a lot of potential. You could use your skills in so many ways. Why don't you join us? Join us, and you'll improve much more." Sasuke lifted his head to stare at the girl.

"What are you doing, Tayuya?" asked her partner.

"Orochimaru-sama needs someone strong right now, doesn't he? This boy is pretty strong, and has a lot of potential," answered the girl. She turned back to Sasuke. "Well? What do you say, boy?" Sasuke kept his mouth shut. Many thoughts were racing through his head at the moment. When he opened his mouth to speak, a powerful stream of water came between him and the red-head.

"Hey! What do you two think you're doing to Sasuke?" demanded a voice. The Uchiha turned his head to see his traveling partner and close friend.

"Naruto," he rasped. "What are you doing here?"

Naruto looked annoyed. "What do you mean what am I doing here? Why did you come out here in the first place? Today's battles are almost over. Why did you suddenly take off?"

"Kidomaru, let's go. I don't want to get tangled up in any more messes." The red haired girl returned her Pokemon to their Pokeballs and started to follow her parter. She stopped for a while and turned to look at Sasuke. She smirked. "The name's Tayuya. When we meet again, I hope you'll have your answer." Then, she took off.

Naruto ran to Sasuke's side, helping him up. The Uchiha returned his sleeping Sneasel and Houndour to their Pokeballs and walked off. "Hey, Sasuke-teme! Wait!" shouted Naruto.

"What is it?" asked Sasuke, his eyes clouded in confusion.

"Why don't we return to the stadium? Maybe watching the contest battles will cool you off," offered Naruto.

"No, you go. I'm heading back to the Pokemon Center. I need to clear things up," replied Sasuke.

Naruto looked confused. He returned his Marshtomp to his Pokeball. "Okay, teme. Those two looked like they beat your Pokemon up." Sasuke flinched. Without a word, he walked towards the city.

* * *

"So did you find him?" asked Kushina when Naruto sat back down in his seat.

"Yeah. It looks like he was defeated by two people," replied Naruto. _"Those two are definitely from Team Sound. The emblems on their clothes are dead giveaways,"_ thought Naruto.

"Oh, is he going to be okay?" asked Kushina, concerned.

"I think so. Teme will be fine once he calms himself," said Naruto.

"I hope so. I know his mom really well. She's a close friend of mine," stated Kushina.

"You know teme's mom?" asked Naruto.

"Yes. We were pregnant with you and Sasuke at the same time," explained Kushina.

"I see. So how were the other battles?" asked Naruto.

"They were all so-so. You already watched your friends' battles," said Kushina.

"What about the red-head named Karin?" Naruto kept asking.

"She made it to the next round too. I have to say, she has a pretty tough Golbat," replied Kushina.

"This is the last round, right?" Naruto asked again.

"Yes." Kushina and Naruto watched the last battle in silence.

* * *

"Thank God we all made it," sighed Ino.

"Hinata, it's you against me tomorrow. You'd better be ready for it," said TenTen while grinning.

"U-Um, yes, I'm ready t-to face you, TenTen. E-Even if you have trained with Neji nii-san for a long t-time, I'm confident," stuttered Hinata.

"That's the spirit, girl!" cheered TenTen.

"Hey Billboard Brow, you'd better win tomorrow's match too. If you and I win, we get to face off the day after tomorrow," reminded Ino.

"Of course I'll win. I can't wait to fight you again, pig," said Sakura.

"Glad to hear it. Well, have a nice evening, girls. I'm going back to my room." Ino grabbed her bag, slung it over her right shoulder, and headed off to her room.

"You go on ahead, Hinata. I'm going to pay the boys a visit," said Sakura. Hinata stalked off to her room, along with TenTen. Sakura ran off to the Pokemon Center to chat with her two traveling partners.

* * *

"Teme, stop brooding, will you? It's affecting the atmosphere!" argued Naruto.

"Hn, you actually know some big words, dobe. Congratulations," said Sasuke, sarcastically.

"Why won't you tell me what happened with those two, teme?" asked Naruto, fuming.

"It's none of your business, Naruto!" retorted Sasuke.

Sakura stood outside their door, listening to their argument. _"What are those two fighting about? What does Naruto mean when he said 'those two'? Can't they just get along? They were getting along fine almost all the time. What caused this blowup?"_ Sakura thought.

"You're a friend, Sasuke! If those Team Sound goons did something to you…" Naruto was soon interrupted by Sasuke grabbing Naruto's shirt collar.

"They didn't say anything, okay? Just lay off, Naruto!" shouted Sasuke. He threw Naruto to the ground soon after. Then, Sasuke flopped down on his bed and turned his back on his blond friend.

Naruto sighed heavily. "Fine, be that way, teme! Don't expect me to help you next time you're in trouble!" Naruto lied down on his own bed, turning his back on Sasuke as well.

Sakura had opened the door a little, and was watching the fight. She stood, agape and as stiff as a board. _"Why was Sasuke-kun so troubled? What happened?_

* * *

Sakura was back in her room now, sitting on her bed and staring down, still deep in thought about the argument between her teammates. Hinata soon came out of the shower and noticed an agitated Sakura in the room. "Sakura, w-what's bothering y-you?" asked Hinata.

Sakura looked up and replied, "Naruto and Sasuke-kun had a huge fight. Sasuke-kun seemed to be really mad at Naruto. I don't know what happened between them."

"I-Is Naruto-kun okay?" asked a concerned Hinata.

"Don't worry, he's fine. Naruto's always okay," reassured Sakura. "It's just, I haven't seen them fight like this. Sure, they have squabbles here and there, but this argument is just huge."

"I-I'm sure they'll m-make up sometime. T-They always d-do, right?" Sakura looked at Hinata, hoping she was right.

"Well, I hope they make up soon too," mumbled Sakura.

* * *

Tsunami ran out on stage and announced, "Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome back to the Escargot Contest! Today, we'll be continuing the battle round! Yesterday's victorious competitors will get to face off against each other today! Tomorrow, we'll have the semi-finals and the finals right here! Don't miss it! Now, let's get started with our first battle! On the right side of me is Sakura, and on the left side is Aiko! We have five minutes on the clock. Begin!"

"Skitty, take the stage!" shouted Sakura as she threw up Skitty's Pokeball. A huge heart formed in midair, and soon, it separated into smaller hearts, with Skitty in the center. The small cat-like Pokemon landed lightly on her feet and posed cutely.

"Smoochum, it's your turn," said Sakura's opponent. Hearts surrounded the small psychic/ice type Pokemon as it materialized. Once both sides were ready, they attacked.

"Skitty, start off with Tackle," commanded Sakura. Skitty charged, head on, towards the Smoochum.

"Dodge then use Fake Tears." The Smoochum dove out of the way of Skitty's Tackle, and once the cat-like Pokemon faced Smoochum again, the Kiss Pokemon's eyes were filled with tears. Skitty eased up and got closer to the Smoochum, her face full of pity. Despite Sakura's yells, Skitty kept nudging Smoochum. "Now, Powder Snow!" Smoochum quickly blew out snow from its mouth, successfully hitting Skitty. Now the cat Pokemon was frozen solid.

"_Oh great. Skitty's frozen and I can't even focus on this match. I wish I didn't see Naruto and Sasuke's fight,"_ thought Sakura. She shook her head to clear her thoughts.

Aiko shouted, "Use Pound, Smoochum!" Smoochum jumped in the air, and somersaulted down. Once she got close enough to the frozen Skitty, her hand glowed white and hit Skitty's head. The ice encasing Skitty shattered, and the cat-like Pokemon slid back from the impact.

"Skitty, Sing," commanded Sakura. Skitty sung an alluring lullaby. Musical notes accompanied her voice as well. Smoochum became a little drowsy, then it fell asleep.

"Wow, the melody of the sing as well as the colorful notes in the air is a treat for both our ears and eyes," commented Tsunami.

"_Yes! We're back on track. I'll have to be more attentive from now on,"_ thought Sakura.

* * *

"Sakura seems to be a little distracted. It's not very noticeable, though. Did something happen?" asked Kushina. Naruto kept staring at the stage. "Naruto? Did something happen?" This time Naruto's head jerked up and turned to look at his mom.

"Oh, I don't know, Mom. Sasuke's acting like a stuck-up jerk now. I don't know what got into him," answered Naruto.

"Okay, that wasn't really what I asked, but, did Sasuke do something to you?" Kushina asked again.

"We had a huge fight. I was just trying to help him, but he just had to get violent. What's with that jerk anyway?" Naruto was staring off into space once again.

"He's not very sociable, is he?" Kushina asked. Naruto shook his head 'no'. Kushina nodded once. She fixed her eyes on the ongoing match. "I hope he'll open up to someone one day."

"Thirty seconds left, Sakura-chan," mumbled Naruto, nervous once again. He glanced at the scoreboard. Sakura and her opponent were tied. "Get further ahead, Sakura-chan."

Skitty fired a Fire Spin attack at the Smoochum with her Assist attack. Kushina flinched. "Ouch! That's got to hurt," commented Kushina. The Smoochum staggered and fell, unable to battle.

"That's it for Smoochum, ladies and gentlemen! The person who will be advancing to the semi-finals is Sakura!" announced Tsunami. Cheers erupted from the crowd. Naruto enthusiastically cheered for his close friend.

Kushina smiled. _"At least he's still enthusiastic about Sakura's contest. I hope he training well too. If he's going to challenge Kakashi, he'd better be in good shape. I've seen Kakashi practice with Minato before, and I have to admit, that kid is talented." _Kushina closed her eyes lightly and let the memories flood her mind.

Naruto watched intently as Ino battled. _"If Ino wins this, she'll have to battle Sakura-chan tomorrow,"_ thought Naruto. He glanced at his mom. She looked like she was thinking about something. He decided not to disturb her, and fixed his eyes on the battle.

As five minutes passed by, the tension grew. The scoreboard and Tsunami claimed that Ino was victorious. The blond girl happily hugged her Drifloom. Then, she exited the stage. Now, it was time for Hinata and TenTen to fight against each other. Naruto was looking forward to this match. He tensed slightly in his seat as he waited for the contestants to appear.

* * *

"Now, it's time for the match between Hinata and TenTen! Ladies, you two have five minutes on the clock. You can start now!" said Tsunami.

Hinata daintily threw her Pokeball. "Come on out, Kirlia." As Kirlia materialized, flower petals rained around her. The Pokemon twirled once, skillfully, like a ballet dancer, completing her entrance.

"All right, Croconaw, it's your turn to shine!" shouted TenTen. "Use Water Gun!" Croconaw swiftly lauched a powerful stream of water towards Kirlia.

"Confusion!" commanded Hinata. Kirlia calmly stood her ground and stopped the Water Gun attack. Then, she launched the water back at Croconaw.

"Scratch, Croconaw!" said TenTen. Croconaw ran towards the water and cross-scratched it, showering himself with sparking droplets of water.

"That was a smart move! Using the water to its advantage, Croconaw has managed to dock some points from Hinata!" commented Tsunami.

TenTen continued, "Now, charge towards Kirlia!" Croconaw started running towards the Feeling Pokemon.

"Calm Mind," said Hinata. Kirlia stood, unmoving. Then, she started glowing softly. Before Croconaw reached Kirlia, the Feeling Pokemon opened its eyes abruptly. "Psychic!" Kirlia, then, unleashed a wave of blue psychic energy towards the charging Croconaw. TenTen already lost a few points because of Kirlia's beautiful Calm Mind.

Crocnoaw was too close to dodge the attack, so he ended up getting hit. The alligator-like Pokemon was sent flying into the air. TenTen lost some more points. "Water Gun again!" shouted TenTen. Another stream of water was sent towards Kirlia. Again, the water was stopped by Kirlia's Confusion and hurled back at Croconaw. This time, however, Croconaw managed to dodge the water, which got some points off Hinata.

Croconaw was now diving down towards Kirlia. "Ice Fang," said TenTen. Croconaw somersaulted once and landed on Kirlia. The Feeling Pokemon tried to shake him off, but failed. Croconaw sunk his teeth into Kirlia, and after a while, jumped off. Now, Kirlia was frozen.

"Yes! Now Slash 'em!" Croconaw's claws glowed white. He jumped up, then slashed Kirlia, leaving white lines as an after effect of the attack. Kirlia was blown back from the attack. Hinata lost some points because Kirlia took some damage and because of Croconaw's appealing Slash attack.

"Croconaw, Bite!" As Croconaw charged towards Kirlia to bite it, Kirlia used Confusion to stop Crononaw and lift him in the air.

"Double Team, Kirlia!" commanded Hinata. While holding the Confusion attack, Kirlia duplicated herself. Then, Kirlia forcefully let Croconaw down. "Magical Leaf!" The Kirlias launched multiple glowing leaves toward Croconaw. The crocodile-like Pokemon was hit badly, and was trying to shield himself from the attack. TenTen lost more points for the super-effective hit.

"Don't give in, Croconaw. Deflect them all with Water Pulse!" Croconaw became outlined in white light. Then, he created a huge tornado of water around him, protecting him from the attack. Hinata lost points for that.

Once the Magical Leaf attack wore off, Croconaw lowered the Water Pulse attack and spun around while using Water Gun. The fake Kirlias disappeared while the real Kirlia took the hit. Croconaw abruptly stopped spinning and cut the Water Gun attack so that he would be showered with the droplets. More points were deducted from Hinata.

"All right, now get close, and use Crunch!" shouted TenTen. While Kirlia was still down, Croconaw quickly charged towards her with his teeth glowing white. Then, he chomped down on the psychic Pokemon. Hinata lost even more points. Kirlia struggled to get up, but her efforts were in vain. She was soon knocked down again by Croconaw's Take Down attack.

"Time's up!" warned Tsunami. "The contestant who'll be moving on to the semi-finals is…" Tsunami paused for some effect. Hinata and TenTen slowly raised their heads to the scoreboard. They didn't need to look twice to see who the winner was. "TenTen!" announced Tsunami.

TenTen grinned and Hinata gave a small smile. They both returned their Pokemon to their Pokeballs and shook hands. "You put up a great fight, Hinata," complimented TenTen.

"You did too, T-TenTen. I guess y-you'd be expected to win s-since you've been training with N-Neji nii-san for a l-long time," said Hinata. "I wish you l-luck in the s-semi-finals, TenTen."

"Thanks, Hinata. Contest battles aren't so bad," commented TenTen. The two girls exited the stage together.

* * *

"You two put up a great show!" complimented Ino when they got back to the waiting room.

"Thanks Ino. You and Sakura are up against each other tomorrow too," reminded TenTen.

"I'm not going to go easy on you, Billboard Brow," warned Ino.

"I don't want you to either, Pig. Let's give it our all," said Sakura. Ino nodded in agreement.

"Hey, by the way, where's Sasuke?" asked TenTen. All the girls turned to look at her. "I glanced at the audience once, and I saw Naruto, but not Sasuke."

"Sasuke-kun wasn't there?" whispered Sakura. _"The fight was worse than I thought,"_ she thought.

"What happened between him and Naruto?" asked Ino.

"I don't really know either. They had a fight; a huge one at that," replied Sakura.

"I wouldn't be too concerned about Naruto. He's always happy and hyper," said Ino.

"_I wouldn't be too sure, Ino."_ Sakura kept the thought to herself.

* * *

The curtains were drawn. Light barely seeped into the dark room. A young, dark haired boy said on the bed, obviously troubled. He replayed the scene with the two members of Team Sound in his head over and over again.

"_Why don't you join us? Join us, and you'll improve much more."_ Sasuke clenched his fists tighter. He felt like hitting the wall over and over again. _"Out of all people, __**Naruto**_ _had to save me. We beat them in Petalburg Forest. Why can't I defeat them on my own? Am I weak?"_ Such thoughts floated around in Sasuke's mind. _"I can't fall into their traps. I can't be tempted to join them. Then again, my goal of defeating my brother; my brother, one of the Elite Four."_ Sasuke was clearly confused now.

He lied down on his bed and stared at the ceiling. "I couldn't even bring myself to go to the contest," mumbled the young Uchiha. He remembered his pink haired friend. He remembered that the contest was important to her, but his mind was too clumped with confusing thoughts. He couldn't even make it to the stadium to watch her contest. "I've never really taken training sessions with that idiot, Naruto seriously. He may have been growing stronger, and I was just oblivious." Sasuke got irritated. "No, that dobe can't be stronger than me. That's not possible." He rolled on his side and tried to sleep, but his mind won't let him.

* * *

"This match concludes our contest for today! Tomorrow will be the semi-finals. Don't miss the action folks! The Escargot Contest is starting to heat up! We'll see you tomorrow," announced Tsunami.

The girls didn't go to their rooms as a group today. Hinata, having promised Neji that she would come back as soon as she can, teleported herself to Mosdeep. Ino, TenTen, and Sakura went different ways. Ino went into Mauville City while TenTen decided to rest in her room. Sakura intended to let her Pokemon play on the beach.

"Come on out, everyone," said Sakura as she called all her Pokemon out. Combusken, Eevee, Skitty, and Cherubi happily ran around with their trainer.

Whenever some perverted person came up to Sakura, Combusken would either scare them or punch them away. "Overprotective, aren't you, Combusken?" asked Sakura, patting her Pokemon's head.

"Combusken!" The Young Fowl Pokemon eagerly replied.

"Cherubi! Bi!" Sakura heard her Cherubi's cries for help. She looked around and saw that the small Pokemon was being chased by two Starly. Two children were also chasing the Pokemon. Combusken quickly ran towards Cherubi and used Slash to knock out the Starlys. The two children chasing the Starlys started to sniff, then cry like they've never cried before.

Sakura panicked. She tried to calm them down. "H-Hey, um, d-do you um, want to play with my Pokemon?" The children sniffled and nodded their heads simultaneously. Sakura smiled. She called out to her Pokemon, and soon, they were all crowded around her. "Do those Starly belong to you?" The children nodded again.

One of them, a small boy no older than eight years, stuttered, "T-They're actually our s-sister's Pokemon. H-He lent us those Starly s-so that we can p-play with them. T-Then, they started chasing y-your Cherubi, a-and now, they're dead!" The young children started bawling again.

Sakura calmly explained, "No, they're not dead. They're just out cold. Once I give them this Revive, they'll be as good as new." Sakura fished out two small diamond shaped objects from her fanny pack and dropped them in the Starlys' beaks. Both birds' eyes fluttered open, and they were flying once again.

"Thank you, lady!" said the other child, another boy who looked like he was five. "May we know your name?"

"Sure! I'm Sakura Haruno, but just call me Sakura. What about you two?" Sakura said.

The five year old spoke up. "I'm Jun, and this is my older brother, Takashi."

Sakura smiled at them. "What do you want to play? Tag?" The boys looked at each other and nodded, beaming up at Sakura. "You saw them, everyone. Combusken!" Sakura pointed at her very first Pokemon. "You're it! Start running, everyone!" All of the Pokemon and the two children started running. Combusken looked around. He spotted Cherubi floating lazily behind Sakura.

Combusken locked onto his target. He jumped really high. Thanks to his developed legs, he was able to reach Cherubi in two bounces and grab onto the smaller Pokemon. Sakura looked back and saw that Cherubi had been tagged. "Cherubi, you're it now," reminded Sakura.

Combusken seemed to grin smugly as he started running. Sakura looked at Cherubi and saw that she wasn't trying to catch anyone yet. However, the rosette could see the small cherry-like Pokemon trembling. She circled Cherubi to look at her face and saw that it was feeling very upset. "Cherubi?" Sakura asked, concerned.

All of a sudden, Combusken fell, hard. Sakura ran to her Pokemon's aid and saw that some grass had tightly constricted Combusken's legs. "Grass Knot?" Sakura whispered. She looked at Cherubi and then back at Combusken. The Young Fowl Pokemon managed to get up and glare at Cherubi. "Well I see you two are getting along very well," said Sakura, sarcastically. "Come on, tag's not a game for anyone to get angry about. Cherubi, tag another person, or Pokemon, okay?" Cherubi slightly nodded and floated off towards one of the young boys.

"_Grass Knot, huh? An attack that becomes more effective if the target is heavier. It would work well against Ino's Bayleef, but I don't know if she's using Bayleef tomorrow. Should I just use Skitty or Eevee again? I'm saving Combusken for the final round; that is, if I manage to get to the finals. I can't guarantee that Ino will be using Bayleef, but I think I'll put Cherubi in the match against Ino. The finals and semi-finals are both tomorrow, so, I hope Cherubi can get me to the finals.__Okay, it's settled. Cherubi's battling against Ino.__"_ Sakura stopped her long train of thought and started to run again.

* * *

**Whew! I'm finally finished with this chapter! So, how was it? Good? Bad? Please leave me reviews! It shows you care. =) **


	21. We Have a Winner!

**I am so sorry for not updating. I just kind of lost interest in writing this fic for a while, but then I figured I really should update. I want to make my chapters a little longer, since I don't want a hundred chaptered story. This chapter will be about the semi-finals and finals of the Escargot Cup. **

**Oh, and thank you all for reviewing! I'm glad you liked my story. This fic has now hit the 200 reviews mark! THANK YOU EVERYONE! I appreciate that you enjoyed my story AND reviewed! Now, here's the next chapter for you all to read! **

**The two brothers, Jun and Takashi are just two people I made up, okay? =) If any of you are wondering, this story is a mix of the game-verse and the anime-verse. I like the contests better in the anime, and the thought of the elite four of the games better, so I decided to combine them. **

**

* * *

****We Have a Winner! **

"Welcome back to the Escargot Cup, ladies and gentlemen! Today, will be the last day of the contest. The semi-finals and finals will both be taking place right here, right now! So, let's welcome our remaining contestants!" announced Tsunami. On cue, cheers erupted from the crowd. "Our first match will be between Sakura and Ino! Good luck to both of you."

The tension in the air could be cut with a knife. Sakura and Ino stood facing each other, both girls determined to win this match. When the countdown started, they called out their Pokemon.

"Bayleef, time for some action!" Ino's Bayleef materialized in front of Ino while pink petals rained down on her. With an enthusiastic "Bay!" Bayleef prepared to fight.

"Cherubi, on stage!" Bolts of yellow lightening accompanied Cherubi's entrance. As the small Pokemon levitated, she glared at the larger Bayleef, who glared back. Sakura hoped she had practiced with Cherubi enough the day before. She let her mind drift back to the event of the day before, but at the same time, thinking of the contest.

* * *

_Flashback _

"Hey, how would you two boys like to experience what a Pokemon battle feels like?" The two young boys looked up at the rosette simultaneously. They blinked a couple of times first, but then their lips twitched into smiles, then broad grins. "I'll take that as a yes," said Sakura. "You two can use your Starly. I'll use Cherubi."

"You're using only one Pokemon? A Pokemon who's weak towards flying types?" asked the younger boy.

"I have a contest battle, actually two if I win the first one, tomorrow. I'm thinking of using Cherubi first. I need to train her so that she'll be able to take on my opponent tomorrow," explained Sakura.

"Alright, we can help you out!" agreed the older brother. "Starly use Tackle!" One of the Starlys immediately charged towards Cherubi. The small berry-like Pokemon was hit by the unexpected attack. "Now, follow up with Wing Attack!" commanded the younger brother. Once again, Cherubi was hit, only this time, the attack was super effective.

"Cherubi, you'll have to get used to enduring hits like these! Flying type moves are your weakness!" Sakura motivated Cherubi to stay strong. Once the small berry-like Pokemon recovered slightly, Sakura commanded, "Now, tackle the Starlys with a twist!" Cherubi bashed into Jun's Starly first, then, with agility and grace, spun in the air and tackled Takashi's Starly.

"It looks like a combination of Rapid Spin and Tackle!" commented Takashi. "This is getting fun! Starly, don't give up! Use Peck!" Takashi's Starly's beak glowed white, and charged towards Cherubi. Unfortunately for the grass Pokemon, Starly's beak rammed right into her back. Cherubi plummeted down from the sky and landed, hard, on the sand.

"Cherubi, can you go on?" asked a concerned Sakura. The size of Cherubi's body does not do her motivation justice. The grass Pokemon struggled to get up, but finally succeeded. She floated a few inches off the ground, only to get hit by another Wing Attack by Jun's Starly.

"Grass Pokemon are really weak against flying Pokemon, but your Cherubi's still hanging in there! You must be a great trainer, Sakura!" complimented Jun.

"It's not just me. Cherubi also has the will to support me and not let me down. That's what I love about my Pokemon. They never want to let me down. They always try their hardest for me. So, as their trainer, I want to try my hardest for them too and not disappoint them. Cherubi, now, Magical Leaf!" shouted Sakura.

Just as Jun's Starly was charging towards Cherubi with another Wing Attack, Cherubi's leaves slammed right into the bird's face, forcing him back. "Now twist it!" commanded Sakura. Cherubi started spinning slowly, and created a circle of leaves around it. Takashi's Starly was also charging towards Cherubi, so the barrier of leaves obstructed the bird Pokemon.

The berry-like Pokemon started spinning faster, and faster. Cherubi has surprisingly high speed for a Pokemon with a huge head. Soon enough, both Starlys were flapping around the barricade of leaves Cherubi was conjuring. Once in a while some leaves would shoot out of the mass of leaves and strike both Starlys. The pattern continued, and soon, both Starlys stopped flapping their wings, and landed on the sand.

"Now! Grass Knot!" shouted Sakura. Cherubi stopped twirling, and caught the Starlys with knots of grass from underground. Even though the attack didn't affect the Starlys much, it was still a good use of attacks.

"Sakura, you took us by surprise there!" said Takashi. Jun nodded in agreement.

"Thank you. Leech Seed them, Cherubi," said Sakura. Two small buds shot out and planted themselves on the two Starlys struggling to break free from the Grass Knot attack. Cherubi slowly began to regain her energy by stealing the health of the Starlys.

"It's not over yet! Starly, Quick Attack," commanded Jun. Jun's Starly charged towards Cherubi, leaving a trail of white light behind him, and rammed into the smaller Pokemon. "Good job! Now…" Jun was interrupted by someone calling him and his brother.

"Jun! Takashi!" A young girl, a couple of years older than Sakura, ran up to the trio. "Oh, did you take care of them this whole time? Thank you so much," thanked the girl.

"It was no big deal. I was trying to get them to feel was a Pokemon battle is like. So, how did you boys like it?" asked Sakura.

"It was awesome! I can't wait to get my very first Pokemon! You'll catch one for me, won't you sis?" asked Takashi.

His sister smiled and nodded once. "Of course I will. You still need to mature more if you want to become a trainer," she teased. She turned her attention back to Sakura. "Sorry for not introducing myself yet. My name's Midori."

"I'm Sakura. Your name suits you. Your hair's a beautiful shade of green," complimented Sakura.

"Same goes to you. You hair's pretty unique. 'Sakura' suits you as well," replied Midori. "I'd better get these two back home. Thank you for taking care of them, Sakura."

"Don't mention it!" answered Sakura. As Jun, Takashi, and Midori walked away, hand in hand, Sakura could hear the two younger brothers' voices, telling Midori about the battle recently. She also overheard them talking about her participating in the Escargot Contest. Sakura smiled briefly, then turned to her Cherubi.

The small Pokemon floated down to the ground, and landed softly. Sakura kneeled down and patted Cherubi's head lightly with three fingers. "You did a great job today, Cherubi. If you can keep yourself motivated, then we can win tomorrow!" Cherubi uttered a small cry in agreement. Sakura smiled at Cherubi and took out her Pokeball. "You should rest now." A beam of red light shot out of the Pokeball and recalled Cherubi to the ball.

Sakura, then stood up and walked back to her lodgings. The wind blew lightly, caressing her hair. A single cherry blossom tumbled by, in the air and into the sea. A new beginning for Sakura, her Pokemon, and her friends were emerging. The cherry blossoms will bloom soon: our rose-haired cherry blossom, and her Pokemon.

_End Flashback_

* * *

"Cherubi start off with Tackle," commanded Sakura.

"Bayleef, tackle it too," mimicked Ino. Cherubi and Bayleef charged towards each other. Bayleef, being the larger Pokemon, easily knocked Cherubi a few feet into the air. "Razor Leaf!" continued Ino.

"Magical Leaf!" countered Sakura. As Bayleef's razor leaves zoomed towards Cherubi, the berry-like Pokemon quickly regained her balance in the air and sent some leaves of her own to counter the razor leaves. A small explosion occurred when too many of the leaves collided. Cherubi lightly floated down to the ground, only to realize that she has made a huge mistake.

"Bayleef, Scary Face," said Ino. Cherubi looked up and saw a menacing Bayleef. The smaller Pokemon froze in fear. "Now use Stomp." Before Cherubi could escape, Bayleef lifted one of its feet and crashed it down on the small Pokemon. Cherubi rolled back to Sakura.

"_I didn't know Bayleef could learn Scary Face. Maybe I should've read more books. Concentrate, Sakura! You can do this!"_ Sakura snapped out of her thoughts and commanded, "Cherubi, Magical Leaf." Cherubi launched a trail of leaves toward Bayleef, but Ino had a counterattack up her sleeve.

"Bayleef, use Take Down while countering Cherubi's magical leaves with Razor Leaf," commanded Ino. Bayleef charged towards Cherubi again, while launching some razor leaves in small groups to deflect the magical leaves. Before Bayleef could hit Cherubi, the smaller Pokemon floated up in the air.

Cherubi floated right above Bayleef, directly under the sun. "Sunny Day!" shouted Sakura. Cherubi shot a small, glowing, white ball to the sky. All of a sudden, the sun became much brighter. Bayleef, who was looking up at Cherubi, was blinded by the sudden brightness of the sun. "Now's your chance! Grass Knot!" said Sakura.

Four knots of grass tied Bayleef down and tripped her. _"Yes! It's much more effective on Bayleef, since it's much heavier,_" thought Sakura. The rosette continued, "Now, you can hit her with your Magical Leaf attack!" Cherubi started shooting out leaves toward Bayleef from above. The berry-like Pokemon twirled and slowly advanced toward Bayleef while shooting the leaves, so the leaves formed a spiral, and hurt more as Cherubi gets closer to Bayleef.

"Use Reflect," said Ino. Bayleef quickly created a barricade around herself, so the magical leaves won't hurt as much anymore. Cherubi stopped her attack and floated back up in the air. "Bayleef, Sweet Scent." A soothing and relaxing scent soon filled the air. The audience, judges, and Cherubi began to relax. Bayleef took the chance to ram into Cherubi with a Tackle attack.

Throughout the battle Sakura and Ino were losing points left and right. It was hard to predict who would emerge victorious. Naruto was watching the match and fidgeting like a little child. His mom kept reassuring him that Sakura was putting up a great fight.

"I don't understand why Sakura-chan chose Cherubi to fight against Bayleef! How can a small Pokemon like that beat Ino's Bayleef?" Naruto asked.

"Appearances can be deceiving, Naruto. You never know how powerful Cherubi really is," replied Kushina.

"Take Down, Bayleef!" shouted Ino. Bayleef rammed into Cherubi, hard. More points were deducted from Sakura. Cherubi crashed to the ground. The small Pokemon struggled to get back up. Bayleef attacked Cherubi with a Razor Leaf attack, not giving a chance for Cherubi to recover.

"Is this it for Sakura and Cherubi? Will Ino emerge as the victor?" announced Tsunami, creating tension among the audience.

"_Cherubi, please, please, please get up. I am begging you! Please don't faint!"_ Sakura frantically chanted in her mind. All of a sudden, Cherubi slowly floated up and placed herself directly underneath the sun. Bayleef shielded her eyes from the blinding sun with her leaf. With Sunny Day still in effect, Cherubi started to regain health using Synthesis. _"I did __**not**__ know Cherubi could use Synthesis. What's she planning to do?"_ Sakura thought to herself.

The audience watched on in anticipation. Cherubi glowed brilliantly. The beauty of the combination of Synthesis and Sunny Day caused Ino to lose a couple of points. Among the audience, Kushina smirked. She knew exactly what was going to happen. This would be a big step forward for Cherubi. Naruto looked at his mother and saw that she understood exactly what was going on with Cherubi. The blond boy decided to wait and watch for himself.

"_I'm sure Cherubi's using Synthesis, but she has something else up her sleeve. The sun's blinding me. I can't see properly,"_ thought Sakura as she rubbed her eyes, trying to get rid of the blinding light.

"Bayleef shoot out some razor leaves at Cherubi. Don't let it regain anymore health. Then bind it with Vine Whip," commanded Ino. Bayleef launched a straight line of razor leaves towards Cherubi. Right before the leaves reached Cherubi, a large white beam shot out from Cherubi's mouth.

"_Solarbeam! No wonder I saw her leaves glowing white. Wait, it's not only her leaves that are glowing now!"_ observed Sakura. She squinted to get a better look at her Pokemon. Then, her eyes widened slowly.

The audience stared in awe at the sight before them. Naruto's jaw dropped immensely. He stuttered, "M-Mom, is-is Sakura-chan's Cherubi e-e-…"

"Evolving!" Sakura shouted, unknowingly finishing Naruto's sentence. Under the sun, Cherrim looked healthy and beautiful. Her petals opened up and she floated down to the ground to fight once again.

In the audience, Naruto gaped. "How can Sakura-chan's Cherubi evolve so fast?" he asked.

Kushina answered, "Sakura may have been training her Cherubi. Once Cherubi reaches a certain level, it'll evolve. I guess Sakura's Cherubi have reached that level." Naruto switched on his Pokedex to learn more about Cherrim.

**Cherrim, the Blossom Pokemon. During times of strong sunlight, its bud blooms, its petals open fully, and it becomes very active. **

The Pokedex also gave Naruto an alternate picture of Cherrim. In that picture, Cherrim has a purple petal cloak around it, covering itself up. The picture of Cherrim under sunny conditions looks a lot better and cuter than the Cherrim under normal conditions. "So Sakura-chan's Cherrim will become very active. Her petals have fully bloomed. Sunny Day must be contributing a lot to Cherrim's blooming form," muttered Naruto. Kushina smiled at her son, glad that he was learning a lot just by watching contests.

Ino stared at Cherrim. "I don't get it. When it seems like I'm going to win, your Pokemon does something to save you. I envy your luck, Sakura," said Ino.

"Let's just get this match over with Ino," replied Sakura. "Cherrim, Take Down!" Cherrim slammed into Bayleef with full force, managing to knock the larger Pokemon off her feet. "Now use Magical Leaf!" Cherrim launched many white leaves toward Bayleef, who reflected the attack with her own Razor Leaf attack.

"Use Vine Whip to constrict Cherrim," said Ino. Bayleef's vines shot out swiftly and caught Cherrim. The smaller Pokemon was then, thrown in the air. "Use Razor Leaf, then use Vine Whip to increase the leaves' speed." As the leaves' sped towards Cherrim, the Blossom Pokemon didn't have enough time to dodge, so she ended up taking the hits.

"Cherrim, blow them away with Solarbeam!" shouted Sakura. With the sun still shining brightly, it took Cherrim little time to store energy for the Solarbeam. The white beam of light incinerated the leaves and critically hit Bayleef. Bayleef was blown away, literally, by the Solarbeam. "Now use Grass Knot!" Knots of grass appeared from the ground and tied up Bayleef's feet, tripping her. "Charge towards Bayleef at full speed, Cherrim! Take Down!" shouted Sakura. While Bayleef was still held down by the Grass Knot attack, Cherrim flew at Bayleef and slammed into her, hard.

"Time's up!" reminded Tsunami. The audience leaned in closer while Ino and Sakura lifted their heads slowly to look at the scoreboard. Sakura still has about two-fifths of her points left while Ino has about one-sixth. Sakura beamed with excitement while Ino just sighed and admitted defeat gracefully. "The winner of this round is Sakura Haruno!" The audience cheered and applauded. Naruto shot up from his seat and started cheering while Kushina sat like a polite girl and clapped.

Sakura's face was beaming with such brightness that rivaled the sun's brilliance. Ino marched up to her rival and stuck out her hand. "You put up a great fight, Sakura. I can't believe a Pokemon that small could have beaten Bayleef," commented Ino.

Sakura shook her friend's hand. "I was a little hesitant in choosing Cherubi, or Cherrim, at first, but I thought she could pull it off," Sakura replied, sheepishly. "I never knew Cherrim could use Synthesis. Maybe I need to be more observant. I also didn't expect Cherubi to evolve so quickly."

"I never expected an evolution to take place during a contest. Well, I guess Lady Luck was definitely on your side today, Sakura. I'll be cheering for you in the final round," said Ino. Then she and Sakura walked off stage.

The two friends chatted while walking back to the waiting room. Sakura suddenly stopped talking in mid-sentence. Ino looked at her, confused, then looked straight ahead, where Sakura was facing. A red headed girl about their age was casually pacing towards the two girls.

She briefly stopped beside Sakura. "I thought you said coordinators were 'weak'," said Sakura.

Karin snickered and replied, "I did. That's why I entered this contest: to show how weak you coordinators really are." Ino got extremely annoyed then, but she kept her cool. Sakura already got used to Karin's answers.

"I actually hope you win this round, Karin. Then I can kick your butt again," taunted Sakura while chuckling.

Karin swiftly turned around, her hair swishing wildly. "Oh I'll win this round for sure. This time, I'm going to pound you and your Pokemon so badly that you'll want to beg for mercy right there on stage," threatened Karin. She then strolled past the two girls, pulled out her Pokeball, and went on stage.

"What's her problem?" asked Ino.

"She hates coordinators," replied Sakura.

"Then why's she participating, again?" Ino asked, with a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

"According to her, she wants to prove that coordinators are weak by beating them in this contest," answered Sakura. Ino sighed, shrugged, then started a new topic of conversation with Sakura.

* * *

Naruto sighed. "That bastard, Sasuke. He should've come. This is Sakura-chan's final day for the contest," mumbled the blond boy.

"Maybe he'll show up at the last minute, Naruto. Who knows?" reassured Kushina. She turned her attention back to the contest. "That red-head's good," she commented. "Her name's Karin, isn't it?"

"Yeah," growled Naruto.

Kushina turned her attention to her son now. "What's wrong, Naruto? Why the growling?"

"Sakura-chan, teme, and I met her at Dewford. That Karin girl's bad news, Mom," explained Naruto.

"Well, bad news or not, she's a pretty decent fighter. She doesn't look like she knows much about contest battles, though. However, she can still hold up against her opponent. Her opponent's going to lose any minute now," concluded Kushina.

"Mom, how do you predict all this stuff? Are you some kind of psychic?" asked Naruto, his eyes suddenly sparkling with delight.

Kushina laughed. "No no, I've just had a lot of experience with this kind of stuff, that's all," answered Kushina.

"Oh, okay. Mom, I never saw any badges or ribbons at home that belong to you," said Naruto, his eyes fixed on his thighs.

"Well, what do you think I did with them?" asked Kushina.

Naruto mechanically turned his head to face Kushina. "T-Them? Are you saying you've won both badges and ribbons, Mom? Are you that strong?" Naruto asked, his eyes widening as each second passed.

"Well, that's for me to know and for you to find out, Naruto," teased Kushina.

"Mom, that's not fair!" complained Naruto. "I'm your son. Tell me!"

Kushina brought her finger to her lips. "You'll find out sooner or later," answered Kushina in a sing-song voice.

Naruto crossed her arms and pouted. Kushina giggled. _"He's just like a little toddler: my little Naruto,"_ thought Kushina.

* * *

"Congratulations on winning, Sakura!" greeted TenTen. Sakura and Ino were surprised that she was in the waiting room.

"Hey, how did you get back here?" asked Ino.

"I was allowed access to this room because I was once a participant. Neat, huh?" said TenTen, giving a thumbs-up.

"Were you watching us in this room or outside?" asked Sakura.

"I preferred to watch the match here. I don't know why, myself," replied TenTen, smiling. She turned to the monitor and commented, "That Karin girl's doing really well. I'm guessing you're going to have to fight her next, Sakura. It's all come down to this now: the finals. Don't lose!"

"Yeah, Billboard Brow. I won't stop bugging you, **ever** if you make it this far and lose," joked Ino.

The girls were interrupted by Tsunami's announcement, "The winner of this round is Karin! Finally, we have come to the last match. Sakura versus Karin! Now it's time for a short break. When we get back, get ready for some intense fighting."

Courage and determination burned Sakura's nervousness away. She whispered to herself, "Let's see what you got, Karin." Sakura prepared her stronger Pokemon's, Combusken's, Pokeball and got ready to go on stage. "Wish me luck, girls," she said.

"Good luck, Sakura. We'll be cheering for you," replied Ino. Sakura nodded and walked out the door.

"Now, are you all ready for the finals?" asked Tsunami. She was answered by a huge wave of cheers from the audience. "All right! Let's bring out our last two contestants! On this side, we have Karin!" The redhead was greeted by applause and whoops from the audience. "On the other side, we have Sakura!" The rosette was also met with cheers and applause from the spectators. "We have five minutes on the clock. Begin!"

"Combusken, the stage is yours!" shouted Sakura. A stream of fire spiraled around Combusken as the Young Fowl Pokemon materialized.

"Jynx, it's time to show them what you're made of," said Karin. Confetti accompanied Jynx's flashy entrance.

"Hey, Karin, you do know you have a slight disadvantage, right?" taunted Sakura.

Karin smirked. "Of course I do. That doesn't necessarily mean I'm going to lose, Pinky. Jynx, start off with Powder Snow!" Jynx blew blue powder from its mouth. The stream of blue spiraled towards Combusken.

"Combusken, counter with Fire Spin!" A spiral of red and orange quickly overpowered the Powder Snow attack. "Now spin and dive through the Fire Spin!" Combusken swiftly dove in the circle opening of the fire spiral and started spinning. The fire slowly adorned Combusken as the Young Fowl Pokemon spun towards Jynx. Soon, Combusken looked like a torpedo launched at a high speed.

"Would you look at that, ladies and gentlemen. Combusken has used its own attack not only to hit Jynx, but also to use it to its own advantage! That's going to cost Karin a few point losses," commented Tsunami.

"Jynx, use Psychic to stop that attack," commanded Karin, nonchalantly. Jynx's eyes glowed a bright blue as it started its attack. All of a sudden, the fire surrounding Combusken dispelled, and the Young Fowl Pokemon was left suspended in the air. Combusken struggled to break free of Jynx's Psychic, but its efforts were in vain.

"Combusken, aim a Flamethrower attack at Jynx!" shouted Sakura. With great effort, Combusken blew a large column of fire at Jynx . However, the attack was immediately destroyed by Jynx's Psychic.

"Jynx, use Powder Snow again, and collect the small leftover flames with Psychic," said Karin. Jynx held the small fireballs in the air, and blew out small blue snow balls. Jynx managed to get its Powder Snow attack inside the small fireballs. Then, it used Psychic to launch the glimmering fireballs at Combusken.

"Wow, the ice in the fireballs really makes them look pretty. Combusken seems to be taking the hits hard," said Tsunami.

"_As long as Jynx is using Psychic on Combusken, I can't do anything," _ thought Sakura. As the rosette desperately tried to think of a loophole, Combusken was harshly thrown on the floor, right in front of her. _"I can't use any attacks head-on. I need to find a distraction." _

"Now use Double Team then Lick," commanded Karin. Jynx was suddenly floating right in front of Combusken, and copies of it surrounded the Young Fowl Pokemon. Huge tongues then licked Combusken from head to toe, paralyzing Combusken. Jynx then used Pychic to hurl Combusken across the stage.

"Combusken surround Jynx with a ring of fire!" shouted Sakura. Combusken rose to his feet painfully and charged towards Jynx, breathing fire from his beak.

"It's futile. Jynx, use Psychic to turn the attack back at Combusken," said Karin. The stream of fire changed its course and flew back at Combusken. The Young Fowl Pokemon took the hit, causing Sakura to lose a few points.

"Combusken, keep charging!" said Sakura. Her Combusken burst out of the stream of fire, recharged with energy, and started running circles around Jynx. "Now use Double Team!" Combusken made copies of himself and didn't stop running. As Combusken was running, the flames he was breathing started to intensify. The circle of fire slowly started to build, and the flames rose, creating a wall of fire instead.

"Jynx, control those flames with Psychic," commanded Karin. Before Jynx could carry out her master's orders, Combusken and his clones burst from the wall of fire, ready with his 'Peck' attack. Karin lost some points when Jynx took the hit. Combuken and his clones then back-flipped in a perfect circle, penetrating the wall of fire and dispelling it, causing Karin to lose a few more points.

"Now it's payback time," whispered Sakura. Then she shouted, "Now use Double Kick!" Combusken and his clones charged towards Jynx and delivered two swift kicks, sending the ice Pokemon flying back into a wall. Combusken's clones disappeared one after another, but the Young Fowl Pokemon swiftly ran towards Jynx, ready with a Fire Spin attack.

"Jynx, snap out of it!" shouted a frantic Karin. Before Jynx could recover from Combusken's attacks, she was hit by a Fire Spin attack.

"Fire attack should be very effective against your Jynx. Aren't I right, Karin?" mocked Sakura. The red-head's patience drained away like water down a sink. The buzzer finally rang, signaling the end of the match. The rosette and red-head raised their heads to look up at the scoreboard.

The crowd applauded and erupted in cheers. Naruto jumped up and down, unable to contain his excitement. "She won, Mom! Sakura-chan won! She beat that Karin girl! Yeah! Take that red-head, 'ttebayo!" Kushina smiled at her excited son, happy to see him so energized, even after his big brawl with Sasuke.

"I… won," breathed Sakura. She broke into a huge smile, ran towards Combuken, and hugged him. "I won! I won!" the rosette exclaimed, more excitedly. Beads of tears were gathering at the corner of her eyes. "I can't believe it. All this tension… I won!" She frantically looked around for her two closest friends in the audience.

She could never miss the hyperactive blond boy. He was waving and shouting at the top of his lungs. Even his bright blond hair stood out among the audience. Sakura spotted his mother clapping and smiling a 500 kilowatt smile. The rosette scanned the audience to see if she could find spiky black hair sticking out among the people. Unfortunately for her, Sasuke was nowhere to be seen.

"_He didn't come?" _thought Sakura. Her cheerful front faded into a hurt expression. Tsunami and the judges called Sakura to the middle of the stage to award her the ribbon.

"Sakura, you put up a great performance for everyone in the audience. You were a star," complimented Tsunade. The blond lady then whispered in Sakura's ear, "Though you could polish your moves. I would like to talk to you later, privately, if you don't mind." That grabbed Sakura's attention.

"_**The **__world famous coordinator, Tsunade, wants to have a private chat with __**me**__? Me, a rookie coordinator?"_ Sakura thought. Tsunade meticulously placed the Escargot Ribbon in Sakura's outstretched hands. The rosette clenched the ribbon and brought her hands to her chest, tears of happiness threatening to spill out.

"Congratulations on winning, Sakura! All of our contestants put up great fights and appeals. I hope everyone enjoyed this contest! We may be back next year, so watch out!" announced Tsunami.

* * *

After Ino, TenTen, and Sakura said their goodbyes to each other, Naruto and Kushina congratulated Sakura on winning. "You were awesome out there, Sakura! I knew you would win!" congratulated Naruto.

"Naruto was shaking with anticipation and fear," commented Kushina. Naruto pouted and said, "You didn't have to put the 'fear' part in, Mom." Kushina and Sakura giggled at Naruto's childish attitude.

Sakura's laughter died down, and she asked, "Hey, Naruto, why didn't Sasuke-kun come?" Naruto's everlasting smile vanished and his face turned solemn.

"I don't know either, Sakura-chan. I couldn't get him to come with me today. He's probably in our room, brooding about his loss," explained Naruto.

"Loss? What loss?" asked Sakura.

"You see, he ran into members of Team Sound. That bastard tried to take them on by himself, but his Pokemon ended up getting seriously injured. He was lucky I found him in time, or he would have been toast. He wasn't even grateful that I saved him! What a bastard," mumbled Naruto.

"I see. You know Sasuke-kun, Naruto. Maybe you saving him hurt his pride," commented Sakura.

"What's wrong with a friend saving another friend? Is that something to be ashamed about?" Naruto asked.

"Sakura may be right, Naruto. Sasuke looks like a person who is very proud," said Kushina.

"Still, he shouldn't be **that** hurt," mumbled Naruto.

Suddenly the three of them heard footsteps. They turned and saw Tsunade approaching them. "Tsunade, it's nice to see you," greeted Kushina.

"It's good to see you again, Kushina," returned Tsunade. The blond lady then turned to Sakura and said, "May I have a word with you, Sakura?"

"O-Of course, Tsunade-sama!" replied Sakura. Sakura and Tsunade chatted for a while as they walked along the beach. Sakura talked about her friends and her past very first contest with Tsunade. She also asked for tips and advice on contest moves and combinations.

"Sakura, I watched you perform during my contest and I can see you have a lot of potential. I can also tell you have the brains to think up of new and interesting moves. I can probably help you improve, as your teacher," offered Tsunade.

Sakura stopped dead in her tracks and stared at Tsunade. "T-Tsundae-sama as my teacher? My teacher?" she repeated.

"Yes, Sakura. So, what do you say?" asked Tsunade.

"I-I would never turn down an offer like that, Tsunade-sama!" replied Sakura.

Tsunade smiled. "Good. Now, if I'm correct, the next contest is going to be held in Verdanturf. You are planning to go there, aren't you?"

"Yes I am, but first, I have to help my two close friends prepare for their gym battle against Kakashi-sensei," answered Sakura.

"Oh, Kakashi's also trained you?" asked Tsunade.

"For only a little while, though. I've developed a habit of calling him Kakashi-sensei," said Sakura.

"Then you can call me 'shishou'. I'm glad to have seen your performance, Sakura. When are you free for training tomorrow?" Tsunade inquired.

"I'm not sure, shishou. Do you mind if I call you via video-phone? Where are you staying?" Sakura asked.

"I'm actually staying at the Pokemon Center for now. After a couple of days, I'll be heading to Verdanturf as well," answered Tsunade.

"Oh ok. So I can talk to you later tomorrow then, Tsunade-shishou," said Sakura.

"Come on, let's go back. Your friend and Kushina must be waiting for you," suggested Tsunade.

"_**Oh yeah, I got Tsunade-sama as my teacher! My life can't get any better! I've got two ribbons, and with Tsunade-sama's guidance, there's no way I can lose at the Verdanturf contest! Shannaro!"**_Inner Sakura mused.

* * *

**Yes! I'm finally done with the Escargot Contest! Phew! So, how did you all like it? Good, bad, could be better? I apologize again for updating sooooo late! Please tell me your thoughts with reviews! I welcome constructive criticism as well! **

**~ Sakura Uchiha Hyuuga no Sabaku **


	22. Shocking News!

**Thank you to the people who reviewed! I also received a couple of constructive criticism, and I'm grateful for that. Thank you for pointing out the flaws in my story. =) I'm not a native English speaker, so please bear with me. I know I've still got a long way to go before I can call myself a really good writer. So, here's the next chapter. Enjoy! **

**I'm glad I got the contest over and done with. Now it's time for the gym battle! I hope you all, my readers, are enjoying my story. I kind of have the whole story planned out, so I may be able to update sooner, if I'm not too lazy to put my ideas into words. Plus, it's easy to get really lazy since it's the holidays right now… Well, enjoy this chapter, everyone! Thank you all for reviewing and putting this story on your alerts and favorites list! **

**Oh, and last but not least, MERRY (belated) CHRISTMAS! ^_^ **

**

* * *

****Shocking News**

"Excuse me! May I take back my Skitty?" asked a pink haired coordinator. Four days have passed since the Escargot Contest, and Sakura's two best friends have been training their butts off to prepare for the battle against Kakashi. Also, for the past few days Sakura's Skitty has been begging and pleading Sakura to send her to the Day Care Center every day, morning 'till evening.

"Yes of course. Please wait a moment," replied the day care lady. She disappeared through the curtain obscured doorway and came out a few minutes later, holding not one, but two Skitties.

"Um, I only need one," replied Sakura, slowly. The day care lady set both Skitties on the counter and, without a word, disappeared past the doorway again. Sakura's eyes widened when she saw what the lady was carrying in her arms when she emerged from the doorway. An egg was cradled meticulously in the old lady's arms.

"Your Skitty and this other Skitty gave birth to an egg. Do you want to take you Skitty now, and take responsibility for the egg as well?" asked the old lady.

Sakura froze, thinking of the possibilities. She could take care of the egg and her Skitty, but then it wasn't fair for the male Skitty to lose his mate and egg. "Um, I'll think about it. Right now, I want Skitty to spend time with her mate and her unborn child," answered Sakura. The day care lady nodded and carried the egg back; she then came back to get both Skitties.

Sakura glanced at her Poketch. _"Oh no, I'm late! I promised the boys I would help them train! I'm gonna be late!" _Sakura mentally screamed. She dashed out the Day Care Center and headed south of Mauville City. Once she was outside the city, she spotted Naruto and Sasuke near a group of trees.

* * *

"Aron, use Metal Claw!" commanded Naruto. The small iron Pokemon dashed towards Sasuke's Houndour.

"Counter it with Roar," said Sasuke. Houndour unleashed a terrifying roar that stopped Aron's attack and caused it to cower in fear. "Use Flamethrower while it's down!" Houndour obeyed Sasuke's command and fired a huge column of fire towards the cowering Aron.

"Use Iron Defense to lower the effectiveness of the Flamethrower!" shouted Naruto. Aron's body became outlined in blue and shone for a while. Aron withstood the immense Flamethrower attack successfully, but it still took on a decent amount of damage. "Now's your chance to fight back with Mud Slap!"

Aron ran towards Houndour, and slapped the ground. Mud flew towards the fire-type Pokemon, blinding it for a while. "Since your Houndour's a fire type, a ground type move is effective," explained Naruto.

"Not bad, Naruto. You're getting better at remembering strengths and weaknesses of Pokemon types," commented Sakura as she approached the boys.

"Of course! I want to win this gym battle in one shot! Sasuke-teme and I have been training like crazy these past few days. Let Sasuke and me finish this battle, then you can help us train, Sakura-chan," said Naruto. He turned his focus back on his fight and commanded, " Head-butt Houndour, Aron, now!"

While Aron was right beneath Houndour, the smaller Pokemon pushed off the ground and head-butted Houndour square in the chin. Houndour fell on his back, but quickly wiped the mud off his eyes and sprang back up again. Sasuke smirked. "Not bad, dobe. I admit, you're improving, but you still can't beat me! Houndour, tackle it."

"Aron, dodge!" said Naruto. Aron jumped on Houndour's head just as Houndour charged towards it. "Now use Metal Claw while Houndour's back is turned!" Aron's claws glowed and slashed Houndour's back. The hound Pokemon fell, but got up just as quickly.

"Use Faint Attack," commanded Sasuke. Houndour ran towards Aron's right, and disappeared quickly before Aron could counterattack. The confused Aron didn't expect to be attacked from the opposite side. The slightest moment of distraction cost Aron: Houndour reappeared on Aron's left and attacked it with a fireball. The smaller Pokemon flew forward from the impact. "Now, finish it off with Flamethrower," said Sasuke.

Houndour breathed out a large column of fire while Aron was down, and unfortunately for Aron, it couldn't withstand the heat this time. The smaller Pokemon was blown away, and slid to a stop at Naruto's feet. "Ah well, at least you tried your best, Aron. Great job!" praised Naruto.

"You did have a small disadvantage against Sasuke-kun's Houndour, Naruto. Despite the fact that your Aron was part steel, he still fought well against Houndour. Are you focusing on training your Aron the most, Naruto?" asked Sakura.

Naruto nodded. "Yeah. Since Kakashi's Pokemon are all electric types, I thought Aron's steel and rock type would match up well against his electric Pokemon. I do plan on training the others too, though. Teme doesn't really have any Pokemon that are useful against electric types, so he's training his Houndour right now, so if there are any steel/electric types, Houndour will be useful."

"Wow, you've been studying quite a lot, Naruto. Good job! Ok, do you want me to heal up your Aron?" offered Sakura.

"Sure, Sakura-chan, thank you!" said Naruto. Sakura knelt down beside Aron and rummaged through her bag. With a revive pill and a few potions, Aron was as good as new. Sakura even tossed the iron-eating Pokemon a couple of Pokeblocks.

"Sasuke-kun, let me heal up Houndour too, okay?" offered Sakura.

"Hn, do whatever you want," replied Sasuke. Sakura walked over to Houndour and kneeled down beside it. She offered the hound Pokemon some berries and fed it some Pokeblocks to make it happy as well. The rosette patted the hound's head and stood up.

"Now, let's start again, Naruto, Sakura," said Sasuke. He tossed a Pokeball, which released Grovyle. "I would like to train my trump card as well, so Naruto, choose a second Pokemon. We're going to need to train all our Pokemon."

Naruto grinned. "No problem! Alright, let's go Marshtomp! Marshtomp's **my** trump card. Plus, I just remembered he's resistant to electric attacks, so that should be really helpful, right?"

Sakura nodded in agreement. "Ok, if you two are using your strongest Pokemon, I'll use mine too! Combusken, on stage, and Eevee, you too!" The rosette tossed out two Pokeballs, which released her Combusken and Eevee in a flash of bright, white light. "Why don't we make things a little interesting? Eevee, I'm changing you into Jolteon. That way, there'll be at least one electric Pokemon for you two to take on."

"Alright, let's battle!" cried Naruto. The trio trained and battled all evening. Naruto and Sasuke declared that they were going to challenge Kakashi the next day. Sakura bade them good luck as she walked towards the Day Care Center, and the boys, toward the Pokemon Center to rest.

"Excuse me, is anyone here?" asked Sakura. The day care lady stood up when she heard Sakura's voice.

"Oh yes. Are you here to retrieve your Skitty?" asked the old lady.

"Not really. May I see my Skitty in the yard, instead?" asked Sakura.

The day care lady replied, "Well, okay sure, since you have been coming to the center everyday for the past few days. Follow me." The old lady parted the curtains and walked through the doorway. Sakura followed close behind.

It was night, but some artificial lights and the gleaming lights of Volbeat and Illumise lit up the large backyard brightly. The day care lady brought her index finger to her lips as she walked across the yard. Sakura tip-toed silently, being careful not to wake any sleeping Pokemon. When the day care lady reached a certain tree, she pointed down. Sakura looked down to see two sleeping Skitties with an egg between them, in a patch of grass. The rosette's face softened, and she came close to tears. _"I can't break up a happy family. I can't just take Skitty away from her mate!"_ Sakura mentally yelled. Tears threatened to spill out, but the rosette stayed strong.

"May I come and see them tomorrow as well?" asked Sakura, her eyes never leaving her Skitty.

"Of course. You can come anytime you wish," answered the old lady.

"Thank you. Can you lead me back, now?" Sakura asked again. The day care lady nodded and walked back to the building. Sakura turned and started to walk back, but stopped herself. She turned her head to glance at her sleeping Skitty. Sakura's face saddened and a single tear trailed down her cheek. The rosette quickly wiped it off and forced herself to walk back silently to the day care building.

* * *

"Yo, Sakura-chan! Did you get Skitty back?" greeted Naruto. Without a word, Sakura unclipped her fanny pack from her waist, flung it on the floor, and flopped down on her bed. The rosette covered her eyes with her right arm and started to sniffle. Naruto, who was lying on his bed and messing around with his PokeNavi, immediately shot up and switched off the device. "Sakura-chan? What's wrong?"

When she made no reply, Naruto stood up and sat down on her bed. Sasuke quietly followed suit. "Sakura-chan, why don't you talk to us? I'm sure it'll make you feel better," comforted Naruto. Sasuke was silent, but his actions spoke louder than words. He helped Sakura sit up and put his hands on her shoulder as a sign of comfort. Sakura, on her part, leaned on Sasuke's shoulder, tears trailing down her cheek.

After a few minutes, the rosette finally spoke, "I don't think I'll be taking Skitty back from the Day Care Center." Naruto and Sasuke were both dumbfounded by her decision.

"What? Why not? Skitty was the first Pokemon you caught, Sakura-chan, and I know you care deeply for her! Why aren't you going to take her back?" asked Naruto, shocked to his core.

Sasuke, even though he was surprised, didn't show it on his facial features. He simply let Sakura lean on him and chose not to make things worse by talking about Skitty. Sakura was the one who spoke next. "Skitty and a male Skitty at the Day Care had an egg together. I saw them sleeping, curled up together, warming the egg. If I take Skitty away, I'll be breaking up a happy family. I just… can't… do that!" With those words, the rosette started wailing. Big drops of tears rolled down her cheeks and dripped on her's and Sasuke's laps.

"Sakura-chan," was all Naruto could muster. The blond felt sympathetic towards his close friend. Sure, he hasn't had any experience on losing one of his Pokemon, but he could still feel her pain. _"Sakura-chan, you are willing to feel pain and loss instead of ruining your Pokemon's happiness. You're strong, Sakura-chan." _

"Naruto, I think it's best if we let her cry it out. We shouldn't be touching on that subject any further," suggested Sasuke. He gently laid Sakura's head on her pillow. Once her head touched the fluffy pillow, her wails reduced to sobs, then sniffles. Sasuke and Naruto got up and returned to their own beds. Naruto switched off the lights before he snuggled into his covers. That night the boys fell asleep with Sakura's silent sobs echoing in the darkness.

* * *

Sunlight filtered through the slight opening between the closed curtains. Naruto turned his body so that the sunlight wouldn't reach his eyes. However, it wasn't the sun that woke him.

"I said, get up you idiotic dobe!" yelled Sasuke as he yanked Naruto's blanket away from the blond's hands.

Naruto sat up impatiently and retorted, "Sasuke-teme! I was having a great dream! Why'd you have to ruin the moment?"

"I didn't know you chose dreams over reality, dobe. We have a match with Kakashi today, remember?" reminded Sasuke. That hit the bulls-eye. As quick as lightening, Naruto jumped off his bed and dashed into the bathroom to change.

"Sasuke-kun," mumbled Sakura, still lying in bed. Sasuke walked over to his team mate and sat on her bed. Sakura turned her head towards the dark haired boy. "Sasuke-kun, I want to thank you for letting me cry on your shoulder yesterday. So, thank you." The rosette then gave him a beaming smile.

Sasuke's face softened and replied, "Hn, I was just trying to make you feel better. After all, you did choose to let your Pokemon live a happy life with her family."

"Yeah. I hope Skitty will be happier with her new family and not cling onto me when I break the news to her," said Sakura.

Sasuke's hand hovered over Sakura's head for a while, then he flicked her forehead. "You did what you thought was best for your Skitty. I'm sure she'll accept your choice."

Sakura brought her hand to her forehead and smiled, heartwarmingly. "I hope so too. You're talking a lot these days, Sasuke-kun."

"S-So? Is it a bad thing?" asked Sasuke.

Sakura giggled. "No, not at all. It's a very good thing actually." The rosette sat up. "I'd better get ready too. I have a job of cheering you on, after all!" Once Naruto had finished changing, Sakura sprang up and rushed into the bathroom to change.

"Sakura-chan looks like she's feeling much better now," commented Naruto.

"Hn," was Sasuke's short reply.

* * *

Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke ran to the gym together, once all three of them were ready. When the gym doors opened, the trio saw Kakashi, standing calmly, a few meters in front of them. "Alright, Kakashi-sensei, today Sasuke-teme and I are going to bet you and earn your Dynamo badge, dattebayo!" declared Naruto.

Kakashi spoke, "First you'd have to get to me, don't you?"

Naruto shouted, "What do you mean, 'get to you'? I just have to keep walking straight and, WAHHH!" Before Naruto could finish his sentence, he was electrified. Sakura gasped while Sasuke narrowed his eyes. Naruto backed up quickly. "Wh-What was that?"

"That, Naruto, is a specially designed trap to test the challengers. If you can examine these tiles, and successfully get to me without getting electrified, then I will fight you. However, if you step on the wrong tile and get electrified once, the electric current will shuffle around, and different tiles will be set up for electrification," explained Kakashi.

"S-So if we make one little mistake…" started Naruto.

"We'll have to figure out the pattern all over again," finished Sasuke.

"The other gyms don't have these kinds of puzzles. Why do you have this setup, Kakashi-sensei?" inquired Sakura.

"That's just a fun little puzzle for the challengers. If you truly want to beat me, I want to see your motivation and observation skills. It should be easier for you, Naruto and Sasuke, since there are two of you. Now, start solving the puzzle, you two," said Kakashi.

"Naruto, don't do anything rash. Follow my lead," commanded Sasuke.

"What? Why should I follow your lead? I know what I'm DOING!" Naruto yelled his last word as he was electrified once again.

Sasuke slapped his forehead. "You idiot! Now the electric currents are rearranged! Great, I have to figure out the pattern again." When Sasuke saw Naruto stagger towards another tile, he started to yell, "No you idiot, DON'T!" However, his words didn't reach Naruto's ears fast enough. The blond was shocked by electric bolts for the third time.

Sasuke swiftly hopped from tile to tile and supported Naruto as he was about to fall over. "Okay. Now I can listen to your instructions, teme," Naruto wheezed.

"Tch, good. Now, stand up," said Sasuke. The dark haired male gave Naruto a push to help him stand up. The blond planted his feet so that he wouldn't stumble anymore. As Sasuke analyzed the tiles, Naruto made sure his feet didn't move an inch. The young blond would also occasionally help out Sasuke as much as he could. After several moments of observing and analyzing, the two of them finally stepped on the battleground, in front of Kakashi.

"Yes! Finally! We're here! Ha! Take that, Kakashi-sensei!" gloated Naruto.

"May I remind you that it was Sasuke who did almost all of the work, not you," taunted Kakashi.

"Forget about that, now. Let's battle!" shouted Naruto.

"Okay. It'll be a four on four battle. You two will alternate turns battling against me. If you win three out of four battles, you two will receive the Dynamo badge. Now, ready?" asked Kakashi.

"Ready as I'll ever be," answered Naruto. The silent Sasuke simply nodded.

"Rotom, I choose you," said Kakashi, calling out his dual electric and ghost type Pokemon.

"Ok, I'll go first! Go, Marsh… wahh!" exclaimed Naruto, as Sasuke pulled him back. "Teme, what was that for?"

"His normal Rotom is not affected by ground type moves. I know your Marshtomp can stand electric attacks, but from what I know, a normal Rotom's weak against dark and ghost types. So I think it's best to let a dark type Pokemon handle it," explained Sasuke. "I'll go first. Absol, let's go!" Sasuke's Pokeball released a stream of white light, to reveal the most recent addition to his team: Absol.

"Good, good. You have a good field of knowledge on Pokemon, Sasuke. However, don't think that type advantages will do you any good. Rotom, start off with Thunder shock," commanded Kakashi.

Yellow sparks of electricity surrounded Rotom and was hurled at Absol. The disaster Pokemon took the hit, unfortunately, and was thrown on his back. "Absol use Double Team, then Swords Dance!" commanded Sasuke.

Absol swiftly surrounded Rotom with copies of itself. "After Swords Dance, use Razor Wind!" continued Sasuke. Absol's crescent on his forehead glowed white and unleashed a wave of white energy. His copies did the same thing, and they all hit Rotom. However, when the smoke cleared, Rotom was lying on the ground. Sasuke smirked, thinking he had won. However, the dark haired boy's eyes widened when the Rotom on the ground faded away quickly.

"That was Substitute. You should be more observant," taunted Kakashi. "Rotom, now, Shock Wave!" Light blue waves of electricity rained down of Absol and his copies. The illusions immediately disappeared and Absol laid on the ground, paralyzed. As the disaster Pokemon struggled to get up, Kakashi commanded, "Charge Beam."

Rotom was surrounded by yellow sparks, and a massive blast of electricity was fired. "Absol, turn and use Razor Wind!" shouted Sasuke. The paralyzed Pokemon turned on its back and shot a crescent wave of energy towards the fired Charge Beam. Both attacks clashed with each other and caused an explosion of energy. "Good, now use Bite."

The disaster Pokemon leaped into the air and successfully bit Rotom. As the attack was a dark type move, it was effective against the dual ghost/electric type Rotom. "Not bad, not bad at all, but was it really a good idea to come in contact with Rotom?" inquired Kakashi. All of a sudden, Sasuke realized what Kakashi was talking about. "Rotom, Shock Wave."

The attack was even more effective since Absol had psychical contact with Rotom. The disaster Pokemon landed with a 'thud' and was not able to continue battling. Without a word, Sasuke returned Absol to its Pokeball and walked back to Naruto. "You'd better win the next one," murmured Sasuke, when he walked past Naruto. Naruto nodded, and walked on the battle field.

Kakashi returned Rotom to its Pokeball and called out a different Pokemon. "Manectric, you're up." With a flash of white light, Manectric stood in front of Kakashi, thin bolts of electricity surrounding its body.

"Marshtomp, go!" Naruto called out his Marshtomp and got launched the first attack. "Okay, Marshtomp, hit Manectric with your Water Gun attack!"

Sakura's jaw dropped open. She was watching the match from the gym's entrance, cheering for the boys. _"What are you thinking, Naruto? Water Gun?" _ Sakura mentally chastised Naruto.

"Are you sure about that, Naruto? Manectric, use Thunderbolt to penetrate that Water Gun," commanded Kakashi. Manectric shot a beam of electricity that dissolved the Water Gun attack and hit Marshtomp. Kakashi's eyes widened as he soon realized that electric attacks were not effective against Marshtomp.

"Okay, Marshtomp, Tackle!" shouted Naruto. While Marshtomp still had sparks of electricity surrounding his body, he rammed into Manectric as hard as possible. The lion like Pokemon slid a few feet backwards. "How'd you like that, Kakashi-sensei?" gloated Naruto.

"I'd have to say you made a smart choice in choosing Marshtomp. Don't think I'll give up easily, though," replied Kakashi. "Quick Attack!" Before Naruto could do anything, Manectric had already dashed towards Marshtomp and rammed into him. The mud-fish Pokemon tumbled back, but sprang up immediately.

"Now use Leer," said Kakashi. Manectric ran towards Marshtomp, and once it was close enough, its eyes glowed blue, while looking at Marshtomp straight in the eyes. The mud-fish Pokemon walked backwards as Manectric approached. "Use Bite," commanded Kakashi. Immediately Manectric leaped in the air, and then landed on Marshtomp's back. Then it bit down on Marshtomp's head. The mud-fish Pokemon frantically waved its arms and ran around in circles.

"Marshtomp, Bide!" shouted Naruto. Marshtomp glowed as it absorbed the energy from the Bite attack. Manectric jumped off quickly, realizing the attack. Marshtomp then fired a white stream of energy towards Manectric, and it hit the electric Pokemon right in the face. "Good job! Now, Mud Shot!" said Naruto. While Manectric was still down, Marshtomp fired a stream of mud towards Manectric.

As more mud piled on the electric Pokemon, the weaker it got. Finally, Manectric couldn't battle anymore. Naruto gave a thumbs up to his Marshtomp and his Pokemon returned the gesture."Take that, Kakashi-sensei! Now we're tied!" boasted Naruto. He walked off to let Sasuke come on again. "Win this too, teme," mumbled Naruto.

Kakashi returned Manectric to its Pokeball and took out a new one. "Luxray, it's your turn!" shouted Kakashi. "Sasuke, I wonder how you'll fare against Luxray. After all, I received him as a gift from one of your relatives: Obito Uchiha."

"I won't lose this time, Kakashi. Grovyle, go!" Sasuke called out his very first Pokemon. _"I know Grovyle is a little resistant to electric attacks, so that should be of some use. I cannot lose! Not when that idiot has already won his first battle,"_ thought Sasuke.

"Luxray, start off with Spark, then go into Leer," said Kakashi. Blue sparks of electricity surrounded Luxray, and with a roar, the lion like Pokemon rammed into Grovyle. Then, it jumped a little, and turned its body while looking at Grovyle straight in the eye. Grovyle cowered a little, and while Luxray had the chance, it used its hind legs to kick Grovyle's back.

"Tch, Grovyle, get back at it. Use Pound!" commanded Sasuke. Grovyle swiftly turned around, and while Luxray had its back turned, the gecko like Pokemon swung its head at Luxray's back, hitting Luxray with its huge leaf. "While you're in close proximity, Leaf Blade!" The leaves on Grovyle's arms glowed and the grass type Pokemon slashed Luxray's back, its arms creating an X. Then, Grovyle jumped off of Luxray's back and landed lightly while Luxray fell, forcefully to the ground. Suddenly, Grovyle clutched his sides and fell on his knees. Kakashi smirked under his mask.

"You never expected my Luxray to know a poison type move like Toxic, did you?" asked Kakashi. Sasuke winced, feeling his Grovyle's pain, since poison type moves are very effective against grass type Pokemon. "Luxray, Thunder Fang," said Kakashi. Sparks of electricity surrounded Luxray once again and the lion like Pokemon charged towards Grovyle, ready to sink his fangs in Grovyle's skin.

Sasuke quickly commanded, "Use Leaf Blade to block the Thunder Fang!" Swiftly, Grovyle stood up and placed formed an X with his arms with the leaves glowing. Luxray's fangs and the leaves clashed with each other, forcing both Pokemon back. "Hang in there, Grovyle! Quick Attack, then Absorb!" Even though Grovyle was poisoned, he still managed to put up a fight against Luxray. The gecko Pokemon dashed towards Luxray, leaving a white trail of light, and slammed into the electric Pokemon. As quickly as he could, Grovyle latched onto Luxray's back and started draining as much energy from the electric Pokemon as possible. Once Grovyle was rejuvenated, he kicked off of Luxray's back and landed in front of Sasuke.

"That's smart, Sasuke: using Absorb to regain health. However, he's still poisoned. Luxray, Crunch," commanded Kakashi. Luxray sprang back up and ran towards Grovyle, baring his fangs.

"Grovyle, push him back with Fury Cutter!" shouted Sasuke. Grovyle's leaves glowed again and the gecko Pokemon dashed towards Luxray. The two running Pokemon crashed into each other, however, Grovyle seemed to have the upper hand, despite him being poisoned. The grass type Pokemon slashed Luxray over and over again with his leaves, forcing the lion like Pokemon to pace back, step by step. "Now, finish with Leaf Blade!" Grovyle then delivered a final blow with his leaves to Luxray, causing him to roll and tumble back. Grovyle then fell on his knees, panting heavily. The grass type Pokemon then slowly sank down, onto his stomach. Kakashi's Luxray was knocked out, but it seemed like Grovyle was about to faint as well.

"You did well, Sasuke. My Luxray can't battle anymore. You win," declared Kakashi. Sasuke quickly returned Grovyle to his Pokeball and stepped out of the challenger's box, letting Naruto step in. "This is the final match. If you win this, you two will earn your Dynamo badge. Naruto, are you ready?" asked Kakashi.

As actions speak louder than words, Naruto released his Aron without answering Kakashi's question. The young blond had a determined look on his face and Kakashi could clearly see that. "I'll take that as a yes. Let's go, Electabuzz," said Kakashi.

"Aron use Take Down!" started Naruto.

Aron charged towards Electabuzz, but the larger Pokemon easily dodged the attack but jumping up. "Use Brick Break," commanded Kakashi. Sparks of electricity surrounded Electabuzz's right fist, and the electric Pokemon flattened out his hand to karate chop Aron.

"Quick, use Iron Defense!" Naruto countered swiftly. Aron quickly defended itself, making Electabuzz's Brick Break less effective. Even though Iron Defense helped raise Aron's defense, the small Pokemon was still greatly affected by the karate chop, since it's weak to fighting type attacks. "Head-butt it!" shouted Naruto. Aron quickly jumped up and successfully head-butted Electabuzz right in the stomach. "Great job! Metal Claw!" continued Naruto.

While Aron was still under Electabuzz, he prepared his claws for a Metal Claw attack. Kakashi countered, "Use Low Kick!" Since Aron was slower than Electabuzz, the electric Pokemon hit the smaller Pokemon first with a swift kick. Aron crashed to the ground while Electabuzz landed on his feet. "Prepare a Thunder Punch," commanded Kakashi. Electabuzz curled his right hand into a fist and created yellow sparks of electricity around it. Then, he jumped in the air and began to punch down on Aron.

"Aron, come on!" shouted Naruto, trying to give Aron a little motivation. The small Pokemon managed to stand up again, but still looked wobbly. "Yes! Good! Dodge that punch!" said Naruto. The steel Pokemon managed to roll out of the way of the Thunder Punch and spring up on his feet again. "Use Iron Head!" The steel plate on Aron's head glowed. The steel Pokemon then rammed its head into Electabuzz while his back was turned.

"Thundershock," said Kakashi. Electabuzz fired yellow streams of electricity from his antennae, backwards at Aron. Electabuzz then turned and grabbed Aron's head with one hand, and flung him to the ground.

Naruto winced, feeling sorry for his Aron. The blond shook his head back and forth and got his head back in the battle. "Aron, Take Down!" The small Pokemon emerged forcefully from the small crater in the ground and rammed, full force, into the surprised Electabuzz, sending the larger Pokemon flying back. "Alright! Now, Metal Claw!"

As Aron's claws glowed white, the steel Pokemon dove towards Electabuzz ready to attack. Fortunately for Aron, the Metal Claw hit successfully. "Good, don't stop! Use Metal Head!" continued Naruto. Aron's head glowed white this time, and while in close proximity with Electabuzz, the steel Pokemon head-butted the electric Pokemon.

"Grab that Aron, Electabuzz, then Shock Wave," commanded Kakashi. The small Pokemon was easily gripped by Electabuzz. Sparks of electricity danced around Electabuzz's antennae, then shocked Aron. Both Pokemon crashed to the ground: Electabuzz, affected by Aron's two simultaneous attacks, and Aron worn out by Electabuzz's physically contacted Shock Wave attack.

Without any further command from Kakashi, Electabuzz stumbled back up to his feet and prepared for a Thunder Shock attack. However, Electabuzz wasn't the only Pokemon to act on his own. Once the streams of electricity were released, Aron swiftly moved his claws and dug his way underground. "Hey, that's Dig!" exclaimed Naruto. Suddenly, the ground beneath Electabuzz started shaking and Aron tackled the electric Pokemon from below, sending Electabuzz flying in the air, and crashing back down on the ground.

"Okay, finish it off, Aron!" was Naruto's last command. The steel Pokemon dug underground once again, and this time, it didn't only tackle Electabuzz from below. Aron rammed Electabuzz with his Metal Head attack as well: a combination of Dig and Metal Head. Electabuzz slid over to Kakashi, knocked out.

Kakashi returned his Pokemon to his Pokeball and sighed. "Well, congratulations you two. You win," declared Kakashi. Naruto broke into a huge grin, Sasuke crossed his arms and smirked, while Sakura was jumping up and down joyfully at the entrance.

Aron ran and jumped into Naruto's arms happily. Naruto hugged his little Pokemon tightly. "I owe you big time, little guy! You're the best, Aron! I guess your huge appetite helped bolster your defense, huh? You love iron just like I love ramen!" teased Naruto, laughing joyfully.

Kakashi walked towards Naruto and Sasuke and held out his hand. On his palm, glistening under the lights of the gym, were two badges. "These are for you two. Congratulations on earning them," said Kakashi. Naruto and Sasuke both took one badge each.

Naruto returned Aron to his Pokeball and grinned at Sasuke. With a "hn", Sasuke turned around and started to walk back to the entrance, when Kakashi stopped him. "Sasuke, are you planning on solving the whole puzzle all over again?" asked Kakashi.

"I've already memorized the path we took, so I have no problem," replied Sasuke.

"Well, the path's changed again," confessed Kakashi. Naruto's jaw dropped while Sasuke's eyes widened blinked many times. Kakashi held up his index finger. "There is one definite path back to the entrance for the challengers who defeated me." Both challengers heaved a relieved sigh. Kakashi continued, "However, seeing how you two can solve my puzzles easily, I'd prefer not to show you that one path. Please solve the puzzle all over again, and have fun, you two!" Kakashi finished, happily, and walked past a doorway that led further into the gym.

"Kakashi-sensei, that's so not fair!" yelled Naruto.

"Calm down, dobe. We'll just have to get this over with. The sooner the better," said Sasuke, calmly. So the two friends struggled to find their way out of the electric maze Kakashi invented.

* * *

"Congrats, Sasuke-kun and Naruto! You two beat Kakashi on the first try!" congratulated Sakura while slinging her arms around both their shoulders.

Naruto smiled, despite the fact that he just got electrocuted a dozen times while trying to find the right path back to the entrance of the gym. "I was sure we could beat him! Without a doubt!" boasted Naruto. After walking for a couple of minutes, Naruto realized that Sakura was leading both of them towards the Day Care Center. The blond turned his head back to face the rosette. Her eyes were lowered and she looked downcast. "Sakura-chan," whispered Naruto.

Sasuke could feel the sadness radiating from Sakura's body. He sighed as he kept on letting Sakura steer him towards the Day Care Center. Once the trio stepped inside the building, Sakura ran to the counter and asked to see her Skitty and the family. The old lady nodded and disappeared behind the large curtains. A few moments later, she came out carrying two Skitties in one arm and an egg in the other. The day care lady stepped outside, beside Sakura, and set the family of Skitties down on the ground.

The rosette kneeled down and spoke to her Skitty, "Hey Skitty, it looks like you have a family of your own now."

Her Skitty answered with a, "Nya!"

Sakura nodded. "Well, I can't possibly take that happiness away from you can I?" Skitty then looked at Sakura with a confused expression, tilting her head and uttering a, "Nya?"

Beads of tears were starting to collect at the corners of Sakura's eyes. "So…so… I… decided to let you stay at this center with your new family. Don't worry, I'll come and visit if I have the chance!" said Sakura, trying to lighten up the mood. Her face betrayed her words though, as tears started rolling down her cheeks. Skitty paced towards Sakura and rubbed her head against Sakura's thigh.

The rosette scooped her Skitty up and hugged her. "Skitty, you are the very first Pokemon I caught. Even though I decided to let you live here, I'll never forget the friendship you and I shared. I really want you to be happy with your new family," sobbed Sakura. She set Skitty down on the ground again. "So, I guess this is… goodbye, for now." Wiping the tears away, Sakura stood up and walked towards the entrance.

Skitty followed Sakura, but suddenly stopped when her ex-owner stopped. Sakura bent down to scoop up Skitty, walked back to the male Skitty, and set her Skitty down beside him. "Take good care of her, okay? I hope a gorgeous Skitty will hatch out of your egg too. Have a great live together," bid Sakura. Instead of walking, the rosette ran out of the building. Sasuke and Naruto were forcefully pushed out of the way by Sakura while she was running. The two of them looked at each other, said their 'good-byes' to the day care lady, and ran after their friend.

"Nya…" Sakura's Skitty was left with her mate and egg on the ground. Even though the pink Pokemon felt sad to part with her trainer, she still felt happy that Sakura chose to let Skitty keep her own happiness with her new family. The day care lady took the Skitty family to the backyard once again. Sakura's Skitty positioned herself so that she could look back at the entrance. However she didn't have the chance to observe the door long, as she was brought to the backyard of the center.

* * *

"Sakura-chan, wait!" shouted Naruto, trying to catch up with Sakura. "Could she run this fast before?" Naruto asked out loud.

"Just follow her," suggested Sasuke. The two of them kept running after their female team mate. As they kept running, they realized that Sakura had run to the beach. Sasuke and Naruto soon spotted their friend sitting on the shore, not minding the people running back and forth on the beach at all. The two boys each took a seat beside Sakura, one on each side of her.

"The beach is relaxing, isn't it?" started Sakura. Naruto just nodded while Sasuke stayed silent. "I'm going to miss Skitty, but I did what's best for her. I'm pretty sure she understands."

"You did a really unselfish act, Sakura-chan," commented Naruto.

"Mm, I just want Skitty to be happier," replied Sakura.

"It's best if we just don't talk about it anymore," interrupted Sasuke.

Sakura blinked at him, then smiled. "Yeah, I suppose you're right. Thanks for coming out all this way with me you two."

Naruto grinned and said, "You're welcome! That's what friends are for!" The blond then jumped up and ran into the sea. "Come on you two! Have some fun!"

Sakura's face lit up and she stood up. The rosette grabbed Sasuke's wrists and pulled him into the sea as well. The three of them stayed on the shallowest side of the sea. Naruto and Sakura splashed each other with water while Sasuke just sat in the water, watching his friends fool around.

All of a sudden, Naruto pushed Sakura a little too hard, and she stumbled onto Sasuke. The dark haired boy held Sakura's arms to lessen the impact of her fall. "Ah, thanks, Sasuke…kun." Sakura's words trailed off as she looked straight into Sasuke's eyes. For some reason, Sasuke just froze in that position as well. Sakura had her hands on his shoulders, and she was on her knees. Sasuke held Sakura's arms and he was sitting down. Both of them were in very close physical proximity with each other.

"Hey, are you two ever gonna get up from that position?" teased Naruto. An embarrassed Sakura quickly pushed herself off Sasuke and turned around to face Naruto. Instead of yelling back at him, she just ran towards him and started splashing him with more water.

Sasuke didn't move from his spot. He stared at his two friends once again, however, this time, his attention was more focused on the pink haired girl who chose to give up some of her happiness, instead of take it away from someone else.

* * *

**Yay, this chapter's done! ^_^ Did I surprise all of you with that Skitty part? Sorry if that was really sudden. I just wanted to get a lot of things over and done with, in one chapter, especially the gym battle part. I hope you, my readers, enjoyed it! Please review to tell me what you think! I accept constructive criticism as well, so if there is anyone out there who can help me improve my writing, please review and tell me what's missing! I'm not a native English speaker, but I'm trying hard to write good stories! =) Review please! **


	23. Instability

**I felt like writing another chapter and updating sooner for you guys. Once again, I want to thank the people who submitted reviews. I hope you all will keep supporting me and this story. Things are starting to get a little more dramatic now! Please leave a review after reading!**

**

* * *

****Instability **

"Come on guys, time to go," shouted Sakura. She was already at the entrance of the Pokemon Center while the other two were still getting their Pokemon from Nurse Shizune. Once the boys caught up with Sakura, the three of them headed off to Verdanturf town.

"Sakura-chan, that old lady, Tsunade said she will meet you at Verdanturf, right?" asked Naruto.

Sakura squealed and answered, "Yep! I'm going to be trained by one of the most famous coordinators in history!"

"With her training and your confidence, you'll definitely win the contest at Verdanturf, Sakura-chan!" motivated Naruto. "Verdanturf's not very far, is it?" the blond asked.

"Nope. It's right next to Mauville. I'm sure we'll get there pretty soon," replied Sakura.

During the walk to Mauville, Sakura and Naruto were the ones who talked about the upcoming contest in Verdanturf, and how Sakura would prepare for it, while Sasuke remained silent and reverted back to his brooding mood.

Once they saw the peaceful scenery of Verdanturf, Naruto shouted, "We're here, we're here! It's Verdanturf!" Sakura slapped him on the head, hard, to silence him. "Sakura-chan, you didn't have to do that," whined the young blond.

"You were too loud. Some people come here to recuperate, you know," said Sakura.

The first thing the trio did when they got to Verdanturf was go to the Pokemon Center to get a room and have a quick break. Sakura then said that she was going to search for Tsunade, and walked out of the room.

Naruto sat on his bed and started messing with his PokeNavi. "Hey, Sasuke-teme. There's a cave in Verdanturf, so do you wanna explore it?" suggested Naruto.

"Hn, do whatever you want, dobe," replied Sasuke.

"Fine! I'm going though. Don't blame me if my Pokemon get much more stronger than yours," taunted Naruto. That caught Sasuke's attention. The dark haired boy jumped up and walked out the door before Naruto could. The foxy blond grinned, satisfied with himself, and followed Sasuke out the door.

When the two of them exited their rooms, they spotted Sakura and Tsunade talking at the entrance of the Pokemon Center. Sasuke and Naruto walked up to them to join in on their conversation.

"What'cha talking about?" asked Naruto.

"Oh, hey, Naruto, Sasuke-kun. Tsunade-shishou is going to train me just outside the town, so that I won't be disturbing the people here. We were just discussing some moves I could use in battles and performances. We were just gonna go. Where are you two going?" said Sakura.

"Teme and I are going to explore the Verdanturf Cave. Go train, Sakura-chan! Your contest is more important," replied Naruto. Sakura nodded, gave a small good-bye to her friends and headed off with Tsunade.

"Sakura seems to be okay now," commented Sasuke.

"Losing Skitty's got to be tough on her. It's good to know that she's fine for now. I'm afraid it'll affect her contest performance," said Naruto.

"Hn, she needs to know that there will be major losses in life. Let's go, dobe." Sasuke, with his hands in his pockets, calmly walked out of the center with Naruto following him.

"Hey, teme, wait up!" shouted Naruto, trying to catch up to Sasuke. The dark haired boy, however, ignored the blond and kept walking towards the Verdanturf Cave.

Once they were inside, Naruto complained, "Geez, Sasuke, can't you wait up for your friend?" Sasuke remained silent, and, all of a sudden, he became alert. "Teme, what's wrong with…" Sasuke quickly silenced Naruto by covering his mouth with his hand.

"There's someone, no, there're people in here. They're in hiding," whispered Sasuke.

"How the heck do you sense these things, teme?" asked Naruto, lowering his voice.

"Hn, why should I tell… look out!" Sasuke tackled Naruto to the side, saving him from being hit with a Blizzard attack.

"Not bad. You actually saw my attack coming," a voice resounded. Sasuke and Naruto looked around, trying to search for the source of the voice. "Glaceon, Blizzard." Another Blizzard attack was sent whirling towards Sasuke and Naruto. This time, the two of them jumped out of the way. As soon as the boys dodged the attack, another attack was launched at them.

"Jolteon, Thunder, un!" A huge stream of electricity was then fired at Naruto and Sasuke. Naruto jumped off to one side while Sasuke jumped to another to avoid the attack. Suddenly, Sasuke was grabbed by someone and was lifted in the air.

"Sasuke! Agh!" Naruto was then hoisted in the air as well. The two boys were carried off by two unknown people deeper in the cave in very different directions. Naruto struggled to get free from the person's grip, but the hold on Naruto's collar was too strong. "What the heck? Put me down you kidnapper!" shouted Naruto as he kept on struggling.

Suddenly, Naruto felt himself falling. The blond swiftly took out a Pokeball and threw it towards the ground, releasing Marshtomp, which caught Naruto just in time. The stranger then landed a few meters away from Naruto. _"Who is that guy? Wait, I recognize that emblem on his cloak. Akatsuki! What are they doing here?" _ Naruto mentally asked himself.

"Well, it looks like we have a one on one now, un," said the Akatsuki member. "Jolteon, come back out!" The electric Pokemon growled at Naruto as soon as he was released and the bird Pokemon who carried Naruto and his captor stepped forward as well.

"_A Delibird and Jolteon, huh? I'd better watch out for the Delibird's explosive 'gifts'. Okay, if you want a fight, you'll get one!"_ thought Naruto. Then, he said, "Alright, everyone, let's go!" Naruto released his whole team to help him fight.

"It's nice to meet you little boy, un. The name's Deidara, un! Now, Jolteon start off with Pin Missile. Delibird, use Fly," commanded Deidara. Sharp needles were fired from Jolteon's body while Delibird flew up, high.

"Aron, you can endure that Pin Missile Attack! Marshtomp use Bide! Vulpix fire and Ember attack up at the sky to hit Delibird! Staravia, search for Delibird and try to bring it down," shouted Naruto.

Aron and Marshtomp took the hit from the Pin Missile attack while Staravia flew up to pick a fight with Delibird. Vulpix carefully took aim at Delibird, and fired orbs of fire towards the bird and tried not to hit Staravia in the process. Marshtomp, after storing the energy needed for his Bide attack, fired a stream of white energy towards Jolteon, but the electric Pokemon swiftly dodged the attack.

"Delibird, take care of that Staravia with your Present, then use Blizzard and dive down to attack with Aerial Ace. Jolteon, use Discharge," commanded Deidara.

Delibird quickly threw a multicolored orb at Staravia, and the orb exploded right in front of the flying Pokemon, causing it to crash to the ground. Then, Delibird dove down towards Vulpix while firing its Blizzard attack, which overpowered the orbs of fire. After the Ember attack wore off, Delibird swiftly moved from right to left, and tackled Vulpix forcefully. Multiple streams of electricity shot out in all directions from Jolteon's body, electrifying all of Naruto's Pokemon. However, Marshtomp was unaffected by the electricity.

"Marshtomp, use Mudshot!" Marshtomp sucked in a lungful of air and fired multiple balls of mud at Jolteon. Since electric Pokemon are weak against ground type attacks, Jolteon was greatly affected by the Mudshot.

"Delibird, Present from above, un," said Deidara. Before Marshtomp could look up, an iridescent orb was dropped from the sky and exploded just after it landed on Marshtomp's head. "Jolteon, Double Kick!" The electric Pokemon dashed towards Marshtomp and gave the mud-fish Pokemon two kicks in the stomach with its hind legs, which sent Marshtomp stumbling back. "Delibird, Ice Beam from behind." The bird Pokemon fired a stream of blue energy at Marshtomp's back, freezing the Pokemon.

"Marshtomp! Oh just great. Vulpix, thaw the ice with your Ember attack!" shouted Naruto. However, before Vulpix could unfreeze Marshtomp, it was attacked by Delibird's Aerial Ace. "Staravia, take on that Delibird!" The two bird Pokemon flew up in the air, racing against each other. Suddenly, Delibird disappeared, which confused Staravia. The confusion didn't last long since Staravia was attacked from behind by Delibird.

"Jolteon, use Double Kick on Aron," said Deidara. The electric Pokemon then swiftly turned to Aron and gave the small Pokemon two swift kicks. Since fighting type moves are effective against Aron, the smaller Pokemon got tired out easily.

"Marshtomp, use Mudshot on Jolteon again!" shouted Naruto.

Marshtomp, now free of the ice, fired more orbs of mud towards Jolteon, however, the electric Pokemon jumped out of the way. So, the attack hit the Pokemon behind Jolteon: Aron are also weak against ground type attacks, so that powerful Mudshot attack did him in. Aron was knocked out.

"Jolteon, use Thunder on that Staravia," commanded Deidara. "Delibird, take care of Marshtomp and Vulpix."

A large stream of electricity suddenly hit Staravia, causing it to faint immediately. Delibird used Blizzard on Marshtomp and Vulpix, forcing them both back. Then, Jolteon tackled both of Naruto's remaining Pokemon with a Quick Attack.

"Marshtomp, use Mudshot now, while you're close to Jolteon!" yelled Naruto. Marshtomp quickly grabbed a hold of Jolteon to keep it from dodging, however, once Marshtomp felt the sharp sting of Jolteon's spikes, the mud-fish Pokemon immediately let go.

"Didn't you know? Jolteon's spikes are a means of protection, so they're very prickly, un," explained Deidara. "Jolteon, use Thunder Fang on Vulpix, then make way for Delibird!" Sparks of electricity danced around Jolteon's jaws as he jumped at Vulpix and bit the fox Pokémon, hard. Jolteon then used Vulpix as a spring, and bounced off of the fox Pokemon. Delibird then blew a Blizzard attack at Marshtomp and Vulpix, freezing them both.

"Marshtomp! Vulpix!" cried Naruto. All of Naruto's Pokemon were either frozen or knocked out. The blond shook with anger and fear as well. He returned almost all of his Pokemon to their Pokeballs and faced Deidara.

"What will you do now, little boy? You can't fight anymore, un," stated Deidara. Naruto just stood there, not uttering a word. Unknown to Deidara, the ice near Vulpix was slowly thawing. Suddenly, Vulpix broke through the ice and fired a flamethrower attack at Deidara. Then, the fox-like Pokemon created a wall of fire that separated Deidara and his Pokemon from Naruto.

"Nice reflexes, Vulpix!" complimented Naruto. He then returned Marshtomp and Vulpix to their Pokeballs and started running.

Unknown to Naruto, Deidara's Delibird used its Ice Beam attack to freeze the flames. Deidara stepped out and watched Naruto run. "You got lucky, kid, un. Your fighting style's not too shabby either," Deidara said to himself. "Delibird, let's go back. I wonder how Konan's doing." Deidara returned Jolteon back to his Pokeball and then grabbed Delibird's claws. The bird Pokemon then flew off while carrying Deidara.

* * *

"Where are we?" growled Sasuke. The Uchiha was taken to a completely different part of the cave. The kidnapper's Altaria gracefully landed beside her owner.

"Do not worry. I just want to see how much of a fight you can put up now," replied Sasuke's captor.

"Konan, I have no time for games. Why did you separate Naruto and me? What do you want with us? Answer me!" spat an intimidating Sasuke.

Konan, however was unaffected by Sasuke's intimidation. "Like I said, I simply want to see how you've improved. Now, Glaceon and Altaria, attack," commanded Konan. Glaceon, who was on Altaria's back charged towards Sasuke while Altaria flew up in the air.

With swift reflexes, Sasuke released all his Pokemon. Grovyle blocked Glaceon's attack while the rest of his team looked up to prepare for Altaria's attack. Suddenly a sweet melody filled the air. Sasuke's Pokemon all started becoming drowsy, and the next thing he knew, they all fell on the ground, asleep. _"What? Her Altaria's fast. Damn!"_ Sasuke inwardly cursed.

"Glaceon, use Ice Fang on Grovyle. Altaria, Dragonbreath on all the others," Konan said, calmly. Glaceon sank her fangs in Grovyle's side and spread ice across his body. Altaria swooped down and fired a large green beam that hit all of Sasuke's Pokemon. "Now Glaceon, Icy Wind on all of them, and Altaria, use Mist."

Sasuke's Pokemon were all blasted with an extremely cold wind. All of his Pokemon woke up simultaneously, however, before they could attack Glaceon or Altaria, mist enveloped the surroundings, making Sasuke's Pokemon partially blind. "Houndour, Absol, Grovyle, cut through the fog with Flamethrower, Razor Wind, and Leaf Blade!" shouted Sasuke.

Houndour and Absol tried to clear the fog with their attacks, and possibly, hit Konan's Pokemon, but to no avail. Grovyle courageously crossed his arms and charged into the mist. Luckily for him, he ran straight into Glaceon with his Leaf Blade attack. "Altaria, Take Down! Glaceon, Ice Shard!" stated Konan.

Glaceon quickly retaliated against Grovyle by shooting sharp shards of ice from her mouth. Altaria swooped down and forcefully tackled all of Sasuke's Pokemon with her huge body and wings. "Sneasel, fire an Icy Wind at Altaria! Houndour use Flamethrower against Glaceon," commanded Sasuke.

Since Altaria is weak to ice type moves, Sneasel's Icy Wind attack was effective when it hit the larger Pokemon. Houndour's Flamethrower wasn't able to hit Glaceon though. With her speed, Glaceon swiftly bounced off Houndour's back and used Iron Tail against Absol. The disaster Pokemon managed to block the attack with the large crescent protruding from the side of his head. "Razor Wind now!" shouted Sasuke. Absol's crescent glowed white and he shot a wave of white energy that greatly affected Glaceon.

"That was good, Sasuke," complimented Konan.

"Save your compliments," hissed Sasuke. "Houndour Flamethrower from the back!" As Glaceon was still on the wave of energy that Absol shot, Houndour's Flamethrower attack intensified the damage done to Glaceon. However, the ice Pokemon still managed to leap up, out of the smoke and land gracefully beside Konan.

"Altaria, Dragon Claw! Glaceon, use Shadow Ball, multiple shots," ordered Konan.

Glaceon jumped on Altaria's back when the flying Pokemon swooped down. Altaria's claws glowed and slashed Sasuke's Pokemon from above. Without hesitation, Glaceon fired multiple Shadow Balls at all of Sasuke's Pokemon.

"_Damn, her moves are too fast. I can't even land a hit! I'm sure her Pokemon are of a very high level too. I need to turn the tables somehow!_" Sasuke thought, frantically.

"Show no mercy. Glaceon, Blizzard! Altaria, use Dragon Pulse!" shouted Konan. Her two Pokemon mercilessly fired their attacks from above. Sasuke's Pokemon were defenseless against Konan's Altaria and Glaceon. "Hm, Sasuke, I don't see how you managed to defeat Kakashi at all. You don't seem to be able to land a hit on my Pokemon. Did you even strive to improve?" asked Konan, stoically.

"Shut up! You don't know me!" growled Sasuke.

"You are afraid, Sasuke. Fear is keeping you from improving faster," commented Konan.

"I said shut up!" yelled Sasuke.

"Vulpix, Fire Spin! Marshtomp Water Gun!" All of a sudden a dual fire and water attack appeared and successfully hit the surprised Glaceon and Altaria. A silhouette of a young boy appeared. He came closer, and closer. Then, he stopped to catch his breath. "Finally, I found you, teme! It looks like you're in a pinch again," teased Naruto with a grin on his face.

"This isn't a laughing matter, dobe," retorted Sasuke.

"Yeah yeah, whatever, Sasuke. Now, where were we? Oh, yeah, Vulpix, Flamethrower! Marshtomp, Mudshot!" ordered Naruto. Vulpix created a wall of fire to separate him and Sasuke from Konan while Marshtomp shot a stream of mud at Altaria and Glaceon to bring them down to the ground. "Teme, return your Pokemon to their Pokeballs and let's get out of here!" Without a word, Sasuke did what Naruto told him to. Naruto returned Marshtomp and Vulpix as well. Together, the two of them ran away, searching for the cave's opening.

Like Deidara, Konan quickly froze Vulpix's flames. When she searched for the two boys, they were already gone. "Did you have a nice fight with Sasuke?" asked Deidara from above.

"He has a lot of potential. It's too bad he's not improving as he should. Don't you think he and the girl, Sakura, worked well back at the abandoned ship?" inquired Konan.

"They weren't bad, un. Heh, that Naruto kid does like to put up a fight, un," replied Deidara.

"Hm, it looks like we'll just have to see where everything goes. For now we have to report back to our leader," said Konan. Deidara and Konan then made their way out of Verdanturf Cave. Unknown to them, a Chatot had been watching the battle, concealed within the shadows of the cave. Once Deidara and Konan were out of sight, the Chatot flew away to report to its owner.

* * *

"Thank God, we made it out," panted Naruto. He glanced at Sasuke, then slapped his back. "We make a good team, don't we?" Without responding, Sasuke shrugged off Naruto's hand and walked away from him. Naruto caught up to him and stopped him. "Hey, teme, what's eating you?" asked a concerned Naruto.

"Nothing. I'm going to go somewhere. You should get back to the center or search for Sakura," responded Sasuke. Sasuke then headed off, leaving Naruto.

"Geez, what's up with him?" Naruto mumbled to himself. "Oh well, I'll head back to the Pokemon Center to heal my team then see how Sakura-chan's doing!" The cheerful blond ran then back to the center.

Once Naruto had Nurse Shizune heal his Pokemon, he dashed out to Route 117. "Sakura-chan!" yelled Naruto. The rosette turned around to see her blond friend running up to her.

"Hey, Naruto. Did you want to watch my training session?" asked Sakura.

"Yeah! I wanted to see how you were doing," answered Naruto.

"Training's going great! I'll win the Verdanturf contest for sure! Shannaro!" cheered Sakura.

Tsunade interrupted, "Sakura, don't get too overconfident."

"With Tsunade-shishou training me, I'll definitely win!" said Sakura.

"Getting overconfident isn't going to help. Come on, let's continue," stated Tsunade.

Tsunade displayed a beautiful performance combination with her blue and green Gastrodon and Milotic. Naruto and Sakura watched in awe at her display. "Now, remember that the Verdanturf contest will require you to show off two Pokemon at the same time for the performance and battle rounds. If you can pull off a unique combination in your performance, like a fire and water combination, it'll score some big points for you," explained Tsunade.

"Your Gastrodon and Milotic used a double water combination, and that still stands out beautifully! Okay, so for a unique combination, what about grass and fire?" pondered Sakura.

"As long as you don't mess up the combination by overdoing the fire type move, it'll be a good combo," answered Tsunade.

"Alright, I got it now. Shishou, please watch my performance and give me some advice and critique," said Sakura. Tsunade nodded and Sakura pulled out two Pokeballs from her bag and sealed them in two ball capsules. "Combusken and Cherrim, take the stage!" Cherry blossom petals erupted from Cherrim's Pokeball and came together to form Cherrim. Combusken appeared with a spiral of flames accompanying him.

"Sakura, make sure your Combusken lowers the pressure he exerts on his flames, or else he'll end up burning Cherrim's attack," advised Tsunade.

"Got it! Cherrim, use Petal Dance, and Combusken, Fire Spin!" commanded Sakura. Cherrim perched herself on top of Combusken's head and shot pink petals up in the air in the shape of an upside down cone. Combusken then fired a spiraling stream of fire into the large space that the petals surrounded. Sparks of flames, then, rained down on the sides, accompanying the petals and beautifying the performance.

"That was good. Now find a way to finish up your performance," said Tsunade.

"Right! Combusken stop the Fire Spin and switch to Ember! Cherrim float up in the space where Fire Spin was once, and wait for the Ember. Then, go spin out Magical Leaf!" said Sakura.

Combusken abruptly stopped the Fire Spin attack and let Cherrim float up. The small Pokemon seem camouflaged within the petals of the Petal Dance attack. Then, Combusken shot small orbs of fire towards Cherrim. The orbs spiraled around Cherrim, and quickly, the small Pokemon spun out multiple glowing leaves in the shape of a tornado. The three layers: glowing leaves in the center, orbs of fire spiraling around the leaf tornado, and the pink petals looked very glamorous in the air. Finally, Cherrim spread the Magical Leaf attack more and more, destroying the ember orbs and slicing the pink petals. Then, the cherry blossom shaped Pokemon somersaulted down and landed on Combusken's head as miniscule sparks of left over flames and petals rained down on the two Pokemon.

"Not bad. You kept your cool well. Now if you can keep that calm attitude in the contest, you'll pass the first round," commented Tsunade. A beeper sounded and Tsunade detached her PokeGear from her belt. "Sorry Sakura, I have to go now. We'll meet again here, tomorrow, to work on battling. Oh, do you have a PokeGear?"

"Um, no I never got one. I thought they were more common in Johto," answered Sakura.

"Well having one always comes in handy," said Tsunade. She fished out another Pokegear from one of her pockets. "Here. This is yours. I figured my student should have one so that I can keep in touch with her. I've already registered my number in that PokeGear," continued Tsunade.

Sakura received the PokeGear from Tsunade and thanked her. The older coordinator then returned her Pokemon to their Pokeballs and headed off towards Mauville City. Sakura turned her attention to Naruto and asked, "Where's Sasuke-kun?"

Naruto shrugged. "I have no idea. Oh, I have to tell you what happened in Verdanturf Cave, Sakura-chan!"

"Sure, but don't you think we should go look for Sasuke-kun?" asked a worried Sakura.

"Teme will come back to the Pokemon Center when it's time. Don't worry about him, Sakura-chan," assured Naruto. "I'll tell you everything once we get back to the center." Naruto and Sakura then started walking back into the city and to the Pokemon Center.

Once they entered their room, they sat down on their beds and Naruto started narrating the story from the start. He talked about how they were separated and how he managed to escape from Deidara's clutches. Naruto then rambled on about how he got lost for a while but managed to find Sasuke, who was getting his butt kicked by Konan. After that he described how he and Sasuke ran away and found the opening again.

"Wait wait, you mean to say you both got your butts kicked by Deidara and Konan? Do you know what they were doing in the cave?" asked Sakura.

"Deidara never mentioned anything. He said he just wanted to battle. I don't know about Konan though," replied Naruto.

"Okay, now back to my earliest question: Where's Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked again.

"I really have no idea. He said he had somewhere to go, and left. I haven't seen him yet. Don't worry about him too much, Sakura-chan," said Naruto. All of a sudden the door slammed open. Naruto smiled at Sakura and continued, "See? He's back already. Sasuke, where were you? Don't run off like that without telling me where …"

"Shut up, dobe," growled Sasuke, interrupting Naruto in mid-sentence.

Naruto was taken aback. "What did you say, teme?" Naruto spat back.

"I said shut up. Let's battle," retorted Sasuke.

Sakura frantically looked back and forth between the two guys. "S-Sasuke-kun, what're you saying? Wait, you mean a friendly match right? You don't have to look so…"

"Sakura, stop annoying me. Naruto, I challenge you," said Sasuke.

Sakura looked hurt, but she still tried to talk to Sasuke. "Sasuke-kun, what's gotten into you? Did something happen in the cave?" asked Sakura, genuinely worried for her close friend.

"Nothing happened," mumbled Sasuke.

"Don't mind him, Sakura-chan. He's just bitter because he was getting his butt kicked by a girl!" snapped Naruto. That comment set Sasuke off.

"Oh, and you think you're better than me, dobe?" Sasuke asked angrily.

"At least I managed to get away from my opponent! Oh, and don't forget I actually saved your butt!" shouted Naruto. "I accept your challenge teme! We'll head out to Route 117 so we won't be causing any chaos in the town."

Sasuke smirked. "Hn, I'll wait there then. Don't chicken out."

"That's my line, teme," growled Naruto.

Meanwhile, Sakura was watching the scene unfold between her two closest friends with eyes as wide as saucers. She pushed herself off the bed and stood between them. "Stop it! I don't mind if it's a friendly match, but Sasuke-kun, you sound like you're about to kill Naruto!" Sakura frantically spoke.

"Sakura-chan, I'm sorry, but I don't turn down a challenge. Especially not from someone like that bastard!" snapped Naruto.

"Hn, we'll settle this on Route 117, Naruto," said Sasuke. Then the young dark haired boy walked out the door and slammed it shut.

Sakura looked like she was about to burst into tears. The rosette turned to Naruto and gripped his shoulders. "Naruto, seriously, what happened to Sasuke-kun? I can tell if you two are just bickering for fun, but this is ridiculous! He seriously looked murderous," rambled Sakura.

"Like I said, Sakura-chan, don't worry. I'll beat him up for you," said Naruto. The blond then ruffled Sakura's hair like a big brother would, and headed out the door.

Sakura stood in the room alone, glaring down at the floor. "That's not what I want you to do, Naruto," Sakura mumbled to herself. She then jerked her head up and dashed out the door as well with her PokeGear in her hand.

* * *

"Alright, teme, how does a battle using our starters sound?" asked Naruto.

"Fine. Grovyle, let's go," said Sasuke, throwing out Grovyle's Pokeball.

"Marshtomp, you're up!" called Naruto. Marshtomp and Grovyle seemed confused about their trainers' murderous attitudes. "Your Grovyle has an advantage over Marshtomp. If you still can't beat me with an advantage, then you really suck," taunted Naruto.

"I'll end this in a minute," spat Sasuke. "Grovyle, start with Fury Cutter." Grovyle hesitated for a moment, sensing his owner's malicious side; however, he still launched the attack at Marshtomp.

"Bide!" shouted Naruto. Marshtomp braced himself for the attack. Grovyle knew what Bide was, however, it was too late to cancel his attack. The grass type Pokemon rammed right into Marshtomp and slashed the dual type Pokemon various times. Marshtomp then glowed, and shot a stream of white energy at Grovyle while he was still in close proximity, blasting Grovyle away.

"Grovyle, Quick Attack with Leaf Blade," commanded Sasuke. Grovyle skidded to a stop and dashed towards Marshtomp, leaving a white trail of light behind it. Grovyle slashed Marshtomp with his sharp leaves while also tackling him.

"Marshtomp use Mud Shot," said Naruto. Marshtomp fired multiple balls of mud at Grovyle.

"Grovyle counter it with Bullet Seed," ordered Sasuke. Small orbs of yellow light collided with the mud balls, cancelling each other out. "Grovyle, use Absorb."

Grovyle ran at Marshtomp and did a back flip, latching onto the water Pokemon's back. Marshtomp flinched as Grovyle gradually drained his energy. The mud fish Pokemon grabbed Grovyle's head and slammed the grass type Pokemon down. "Good thinking, Marshtomp. Now Mud Shot again," commanded Naruto.

Grovyle swiftly rolled out of the way before Marshtomp could attack. Then, the grass type Pokemon jumped back, distancing himself from Marshtomp. "Grovyle, Bullet Seed," said Sasuke.

"Use Mud Shot to cancel it out," ordered Naruto. Marshtomp and Grovyle shot their respective attacks simultaneously. The two attacks clashed another time, creating a cloud of smoke in the middle. "Marshtomp, Tackle," said Naruto.

"Grovyle, Leaf Blade!" shouted Sasuke. Marshtomp and Grovyle then ran towards each other, ready to blow each other away. Suddenly, a flash of light appeared between the two Pokemon, and materialized into a Milotic and Combusken. Combusken had his arms out in the shape of an X, blocking Grovyle's Leaf Blade attack. Marshtomp ran into Milotic, however, since Milotic was the larger Pokemon, the mud fish Pokemon was knocked back.

"What are you two doing?" boomed a voice. Naruto looked over Sasuke's shoulder to see Tsunade standing with her arms crossed.

"Shishou, you got here just in time," sounded another voice. This time Naruto looked over his own shoulder to see Sakura.

"Sakura told me the story. Like her, I won't stop you if you two are having a training session, but from what I can see and what I've heard, this definitely doesn't look like a training session," said Tsunade.

"Hn, whatever. I'm out of here," said Sasuke, stoically. He returned Grovyle to his Pokeball and walked past Naruto, then past Sakura, back into Verdanturf Town.

Naruto and Sakura talked with Tsunade for a while, telling her more details about the incident at Verdanturf Cave, since Sakura only told her a few facts. Sakura then apologized to Tsunade for taking up her time, then, Naruto and Sakura went back to Verdanturf Town.

* * *

Night fell and Naruto was already sound asleep in his bed. Sakura, however, was still wide awake. She turned her head to glance at Sasuke's bed, which was apparently empty. Sakura tossed and turned in her bed, still unable to sleep. The rosette then grabbed her Poketch, which was on her bed-side table, and checked the time: 10:49 P.M. Sakura groaned then sat up. Still in her pajamas, Sakura snuck out of bed and put on her sneakers. She grabbed Combusken's Pokemon, just in case she got in some trouble, and snuck out the door.

Sakura was greeted by a cool breeze that refreshed her immediately. She walked out of the center and started wandering. Before she got any farther than the house next to the Pokemon Center, she tripped over something, landing flat on her face.

"Ow, what the… Sasuke-kun?" Sakura whispered. Sasuke was lying on his back, staring at the sky. Sakura looked at her feet and saw that she had tripped over Sasuke's legs. The rosette quickly got up and dusted herself. Then, she walked over to Sasuke and looked down at him. "What're you doing out here, Sasuke-kun?" asked Sakura.

Sasuke ignored her question and kept staring into space. Becoming a little impatient, Sakura plopped down next to him and lied down as well. Sasuke raised one of his eyebrows and turned his head to look at Sakura, but then, he went back to staring at the sky. "Shouldn't you be in bed?" Sasuke finally asked.

"Well, I couldn't sleep. So I came out here for some fresh air," replied Sakura. "What about you? Why didn't you come back to the center?"

"I have my reasons," answered Sasuke. Then an uncomfortable silence settled on them for a few moments.

"The night sky's beautiful, isn't it?" Sakura asked, finally breaking the silence.

"Hn," was Sasuke's answer.

Sakura ignored his grunt and continued, "The stars are pretty. They look so small, even though they're enormous. I can even spot a few constellations!"

"Did you come out here to annoy me more?" said Sasuke.

"Nope, not at all. Sasuke-kun, you should really get over your brooding," teased Sakura. Once again, Sasuke ignored her. Sakura sighed and finally stood up. "If you don't want me here, I'll leave, okay? Just come back to the Pokemon Center. It's a little chilly out here," advised Sakura.

Just as Sakura was about to leave, Sasuke sat up and grabbed her hand, causing Sakura to turn around. Sasuke held her hand for a few moments, then released it. "I admit, you are annoying, but for some reason, you have a pleasant aura around you," admitted Sasuke.

Sakura smiled down at him. "Well, thanks for the part insult, part compliment, Sasuke-kun. I don't mind if you want to stay out here for a while longer, but come back to the center soon, okay?" Sakura then walked back to the Pokemon Center, leaving Sasuke on the grass. Sasuke lied down once again and thought of another incident that happened to him, just before Sakura arrived.

Flashback

"Great, what are you doing here? First Akatsuki now you all," muttered Sasuke.

"Oh please. I know why you're so bitter, Sasuke. Chatot told me all about it," said a red-head, also known as Tayuya. She patted her Chatot, who was perched on her shoulder, lightly on the head.

"Tayuya, why are we doing this again?" asked the twin brothers, Sakon and Ukon.

"The boss said so, remember? So, back to business," continued Tayuya, turning her attention back to Sasuke. However, when she turned to look at Sasuke again, he had already disappeared.

"Houndour, Flamethrower!" A huge stream of fire was suddenly fired at Tayuya, Sakon, Ukon, and their two other comrades.

The largest member of the team released his Pokemon to block the Flamethrower attack. "Rhydon, block that tiny attack," he commanded. The huge Rhydon easily blocked the flames and wasn't even affected much.

"Thanks, Jirobo. Now, Sasuke, why don't you come out?" taunted Tayuya. A Dodrio dashed around a nearby house and reappeared with Sasuke in its beaks. Dodrio then dropped the dark haired Uchiha in front of the gang.

"He can't even defend himself now," jeered a multiple armed man.

"Kidomaru, you're not supposed to make him our enemy," chastised Jirobo.

"I already see you all as enemies," spat Sasuke. "Houndour and Grovyle, use Flamethrower and Bullet Seed!" Sasuke's two Pokemon, who were standing on the rooftop of a house launched long range attacks that Team Sound.

However, Rhydon and Ariados used Rock Blast and Night Shade to defend their owners. Rhydon and Ariados's attacks overpowered Grovyle and Houndour's attacks, as the Rock Blast and Night Shade hit Sasuke's Pokemon.

Tayuya approached Sasuke and knelt down so that she was face to face with him. "Now, don't make us all fight you, Sasuke. We just want to ask you one question," stated Tayuya. Sasuke remained silent as Tayuya looked him in the eyes and asked, "Will you be interested in joining us?"

Sasuke's eyes widened and he quickly stood up. The young boy was speechless. Kidomaru then said, "We all heard from Tayuya's Chatot how you pathetically lost against a girl who was using only two Pokemon." Sasuke flinched, remembering the incident in the cave. "We're just doing you a favor, remember that," continued Kidomaru.

"Think over our offer, Sasuke. If you have a change of heart, just press the button on this special Pokeball and we'll all come to you," explained Tayuya. She handed Sasuke a black and white Pokeball. Sasuke silently took it, and the four Team Sound members disappeared into the night.

End Flashback

"_I can't get their offer out of my head,"_ thought Sasuke. He took out the Pokeball that Tayuya gave him and examined it. _"I just need to press the button, and I'll grow stronger with them. I can't believe I can't even defeat a girl who used only two Pokemon. Damn it!"_ Sasuke inwardly cursed himself. Tired of thinking, Sasuke decided to head back to the Pokemon Center and sleep on it. Hopefully the next day will be clearer for him.

* * *

**It's getting dramatic, isn't it? I'm kind of trying to follow the events that happened in the anime of "Naruto" and weaving them into my story. So, let's see what will happen later, shall we? There's one thing I'll spoil for you all though: I won't make Sasuke leave immediately. In the anime, he leaves the same night that Team Sound came to him, but in my story, he won't be leaving soon… that is… IF he plans to leave. ;)**

**Please review, review, review! **


	24. Wavering Emotions

**And, here's the new chapter, ladies and gents! This author is so sorry for her late, late, late updates. However, the new chapter's finally here! Enjoy reading, readers! =)**

* * *

**Wavering Emotions**

"Sakura, come at me with all you got," challenged Tsunade. Sakura and Tsunade were already on Route 117, training right after breakfast.

"You got it, coach. Combusken, use Fire Spin. Eevee use Tackle!" commanded Sakura. Combusken blew out a spiraling column of fire at Gastrodon and Milotic while Eevee jumped into the spiral and tackled Milotic. Shortly after the Tackle, Combusken's Fire Spin managed to hit both Gastrodon and Milotic. However, since both of them are a little resistant to fire type attacks, they weren't hurt much.

"Good. Make sure your Eevee doesn't get burned by the Fire Spin, though. I'll show you something similar to your move. Milotic, use Aqua Tail, and Gastrodon, use Water Pulse," ordered Tsunade. Streams of water spiraled around Milotic's long tail and an orb of water started to form in front of Gastrodon's third eye. Then, Milotic flung her tail at Combusken and Eevee, sending the spiraling column of water towards them. At the same time, Gastrodon shot the water orb right into the spiraling stream of water. The Water Pulse attack hit Sakura's Pokemon first, then the Aqua Tail attack hit.

"Combusken and Eevee, why'd you two just stand there? You two know better," chastised Sakura. She started to walk towards her Pokemon, but Tsunade stopped her.

"Think of this as a contest battle, with some instructions, Sakura. Don't go to help your Pokemon unless they're knocked out," said Tsunade.

"Okay," replied Sakura.

Just before she called out an attack, Naruto's voice pierced through the air. "Sakura-chan! Sakura-chan!" Sakura quickly turned around, just to get tackled by Naruto.

"Ow, what's wrong?" asked Sakura, pushing Naruto off her and standing up.

Naruto pushed himself up and spoke frantically, "Sasuke's gone! I know he was still there when we woke up, but then, remember he said he wanted to be alone? Yeah, so you left to train, and I left to explore the town and cave some more, and when I came back, he was gone!"

"What? Wait, you're not doing this just to make me anxious are you?" asked a suspicious Sakura.

"I'm serious! He took his bag with him too! I'm pretty sure something else happened to him that we don't know about," said Naruto.

"He can't just leave us like this!" fumed Sakura.

"What do you think happened to him?" asked Naruto.

"I don't know. He was fine when I talked to him last night," answered Sakura.

"Don't worry too much, you two. Maybe he just wanted to train somewhere by himself," said Tsunade. "Don't freak out over something this small. If he wants to go his own way, let him. Don't make him stay if he doesn't want to."

" I don't want him to leave us though," mumbled Sakura.

"I'm sure he probably went somewhere to train. Don't stress yourself out over this," said Tsunade, patting Sakura's head. "Now, let's continue our training."

Sakura slapped her cheeks lightly a few times and shook her head to clear her mind. "Yes, coach! I'm ready now."

"Would you like to watch our match?" Tsunade asked Naruto.

"Um, sure," replied Naruto.

Sakura and Tsunade trained together for the rest of the day, with Naruto giving some suggestions for battle tactics whenever he could. The three of them took a lunch break at noon, and then continued their training in the afternoon.

At about five in the evening, Sakura and her Pokemon were completely worn out from the harsh training Tsunade gave them. The rosette was 100% confident that she would win the Verdanturf contest with the training Tsunade gave her. Naruto assured her that he would be there to watch her match, even if Sasuke couldn't make it.

Sakura and Naruto headed back to the Pokemon Center after parting with Tsunade. The two of them bought two cans of juice and relaxed in the center while they let their Pokemon run free in their room. "Naruto, you don't think Sasuke's abandoned us, do you?" Sakura nervously asked. "I want him to be there for this contest. I've been training like crazy for this day, and I really want to show off what I've learned."

Naruto patted Sakura's back. "Don't worry so much, Sakura. I don't think Sasuke would do that to us, or to you. It's an important day for you. If I remember correctly, the contest's tomorrow, isn't it?"

"Damn, you're right. Do you think I should keep training by myself? Do you think I'm ready?" Sakura asked, starting to panic slightly.

"Calm down, Sakura-chan. You've done enough training for today. Don't wear your Pokemon out too much. Heck, I'm the one who should be training! I need to toughen up for my next gym battle. If Sasuke's still out there training, then I'm really falling behind!" Naruto teased lightly, trying to cheer Sakura up.

Sakura giggled. "You're a good pal to have around, Naruto. Look, why don't you just go and train now? I'll be waiting here, in case either you or Sasuke-kun gets back. I'll also be playing with my Pokemon, so, it's fine," said Sakura. "Go find a place to train, ok?"

"Alright! I'll be heading out now, Sakura-chan. See you later!" Naruto then dashed out of the door as fast as possible.

Sakura walked to where her Pokemon were and crouched down. "I'm sure you guys will do well tomorrow. Combusken and Cherrim, you two are going to be awesome," praised Sakura. "Both of you trained so hard. We're definitely going to win tomorrow, aren't we?"Combusken, Cherrim, and Eevee all cheered in agreement. Cherrim even floated onto Combusken's head and settled there. "I should groom all of you now. It should at least cure my boredom," said Sakura as she took out a comb and some other Pokemon accessories.

After about three hours, Sakura had already groomed her three Pokemon as much as she could, and had eaten dinner. Naruto came in the Pokemon Center a while later, caked in dirt. "You already ate, Sakura-chan?" asked Naruto.

Sakura nodded. "So how'd your training go, Naruto? Good?" Sakura asked back.

"It was good. The next gym leader's going to be a fire type, so I'm toughening up Marshtomp mostly right now. He'll be pretty useful in the upcoming gym battle," replied Naruto.

"Be prepared for unexpected attacks from fire type Pokemon, Naruto. Train the others too," Sakura advised.

"Yeah, I know. I'm going to train them too. Don't worry. I'll definitely win the next battle!" exclaimed Naruto.

"Ok, good luck in advance, Naruto," said Sakura. "I'm going to go outside for a little bit of fresh air. I'll be back soon." Sakura then walked out the Pokemon Center and walked far from the center, onto the route. The rosette then took out Combusken's Pokeball and called him out. "Combusken, can you give me a little light here?"

Combusken nodded then released a small stream of fire from his beak. Sakura squeezed herself between a couple of trees and sat down on a mossy rock. All of a sudden, Sakura's surroundings were decorated with many dots of light. The beautiful sight left Sakura breathless. Volbeat and Illumise were flying around, lighting up the dark night.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Sakura sighed. Combusken retreated his flame and nodded enthusiastically in agreement. "Sasuke-kun, where are you? Where have you gone to?" wondered Sakura.

"Sasuke, you say? Well that boy is definitely a good fighter, don't you think, little girl?" asked a voice.

Sakura jumped to her feet and Combusken got into a fighting stance. "Who's there?" shouted Sakura.

A strong wind blew over the environment, making the trees dance. "Well hello there, I don't think we've met before. My name's Tayuya," introduced the stranger.

"You're a part of Team Sound, aren't you?" asked Sakura, suddenly alert.

"Bravo, little girl," said Tayuya. Sakura's hand inched toward her bag to call out more Pokemon. Tayuya stopped her. "You don't need to be so cautious, pinky- I mean, Sakura. I'm not here to do any harm."

"So why're you here?" Sakura asked.

"I'm just waiting for your beloved Sasuke," replied Tayuya.

"What does Sasuke-kun have to do with you guys?" spat Sakura. Her Combusken growled in disdain as well.

"Oh, don't tell me he didn't tell you and your other friend anything?" Tayuya said.

"What's there to tell?" Sakura growled.

"We gave Sasuke-kun an opportunity to join us," answered Tayuya. Sakura's eyes widened, then narrowed in suspicion.

"Why are you telling me this? How do I know you're telling the truth?" Sakura questioned.

"You haven't seen him all day, have you?" Tayuya's question struck Sakura like lightening. The rosette was suddenly bloated with emotions- fear, suspicion, anger, and most of all, fear. "Hit a nerve, did I?" Tayuya's voice snapped Sakura out of her thoughts.

"Shut up!" shouted Sakura. "Combusken, Fire Spin!" Combusken, sharing the emotions Sakura held, fired a powerful Fire Spin attack at the other girl. Tayuya expertly dodged the attack and flew away, grinning, using her Chatot. Sakura stood rigidly, breathing heavily. Combusken ran to her side and put its arm around her shoulder to comfort her. "Sasuke-kun, you didn't really consider joining them, did you?" whispered the rosette.

* * *

"Sakura-chan, wake up, wake up! Today's the day of your contest!" yelled Naruto, enthusiastically, shaking the girl awake.

Sakura peeked at her friend from under her blanket. "I'm not in the mood to perform today, Naruto," mumbled Sakura. "Go away."

Naruto's jaw literally dropped. "Sakura-chan, what're you saying? Today's the day of the contest! You've been training like crazy for today! What happened to your motivation? I even woke up extra early today!"

"_My motivation…where did it go? Right, it vanished last night,"_ thought the rosette. To Naruto, she replied, "I just don't feel like doing anything right now, Naruto, okay?"

"I can't let you lie here for the rest of the day, Sakura-chan. You need to participate in this contest! There's no backing out! I'm going to drag you there if I have to," declared Naruto.

"Try me," challenged Sakura.

Naruto sighed heavily and mumbled, "You asked for it." He tore the blanket from Sakura's grasp and yanked her off the bed. Then, he grabbed her clothes, which were neatly folded on her bag, and shoved them in her hands. He then turned her around and pushed her in the bathroom. "Now, change quickly, and we'll run to the contest hall," said Naruto, and shut the door.

Sakura stared blankly at her clothes. _"What's wrong with me? Why am I so…de-motivated just because Sasuke-kun's not here? Sasuke-kun… are you really going to join Team Sound? Sasuke-kun, I wanted you to see how much I've trained, and how much I've grown with Tsunade-sama's training in this short period of time. How can you leave us now, Sasuke-kun?" _

Naruto knocked the door frantically. "Sakura-chan, hurry up! Or else, I'm going to drag you to the contest hall in your pajamas!"

"_At least Naruto's still cheering for me. At least I still have him."_ Sakura then slapped herself with one hand. _"I can't let him down. I can't let anyone else down. I __**have**__ to go to that contest. I __**will**__ participate in the contest today."_ Regaining her optimism, Sakura swiftly changed into her shirt and skirt and came out of the bathroom.

"Finally, you're done!" sighed Naruto. The blond shoved Sakura's bag in her hands and dashed out the Pokemon Center, dragging her along behind him.

"Naruto, this is my contest, not your gym battle! Slow down!" shouted Sakura.

"Even if this isn't my battle, it's important to you, Sakura-chan!" replied Naruto.

Once they reached the contest hall, Sakura quickly ran to the waiting room and slumped down on the sofa. "Just in time," she sighed. A few seconds later, Tsunami made her introductory remarks and introduced the first contestant. The appeals went on, and soon, it was Sakura's turn. The rosette pulled out Combusken and Cherrim's Pokeballs. "Okay, guys. Let's do this," she whispered.

Once Sakura was called on, she ran on stage from behind the drawn curtains. "Combusken and Cherrim, take the stage!" cried Sakura. Her two Pokemon materialized in front of her as flower petals showered down on them.

As Sakura was about to shout a command, her mind flashed back to last night's events and lost focus for a while. Combusken and Cherrim looked back at their trainer and waited for her command. Sakura was staring blankly at the ground, her eyes as wide as saucers. "Oh dear, is our contestant having a bad case of stage fright?" Tsunami asked.

Sakura shook her head to maintain her thoughts and focused on her appeal. "Combusken, Fire Spin," commanded Sakura. Combusken bent back and breathed a spiraling column of fire straight up in the air. "Cherrim, use Magical Leaf while hopping up on Combusken's Fire Spin!"

The smaller Pokemon first hopped on Combusken's head, then dove in the spiraling column of fire. As Cherrim hopped its way up the column, it released glowing petals. The Fire Spin attack complimented the glowing column of leaves. Once Cherrim got to the top of the column, the Fire Spin and Magical Leaf combination left the crowd staring in awe.

Sakura was staring at her appeal as well. Suddenly, her mind floated back to Sasuke. She frantically searched for him among the audience. Where was he? Has he gone to Team Sound? He couldn't have! At the same time, Combusken and Cherrim felt Sakura's pessimism and got out of sync with each other. The column of fire became too strong and burned the leaves. Cherrim lost balance and toppled down to the ground. On instinct, Combusken quickly stopped its Fire Spin attack and rushed to catch Cherrim.

"Are you alright, Sakura?" asked Tsunami. Sakura just nodded slowly. Her thoughts got the better of her, and her performance. The rosette's eyes filled with tears as she returned Combusken and Cherrim to their Pokeballs and ran off stage.

* * *

Sakura sat, dejected, in the waiting room as other appeals went on. She stared at Combusken and Cherrim's Pokeballs and talked to them. "I'm sorry, guys. I couldn't focus on the appeal. I'm so sorry I let both of you down," Sakura silently cried. Huge drops of tears rolled down her cheeks as she sniffled. Moments later, Tsunami announced the people who were qualified to go on to the second round. Sakura paid attention to the monitor as faces started appearing. Eight contestants were qualified to go on to the next round, and she was not one of them.

Sakura hung her head. "Well, I guess it should be expected," mumbled the rosette. She put away Combusken and Cherrim's Pokeballs and stood up. Sakura then trotted out of the room.

Once she was outside the waiting room, she was literally tackled by Naruto. "Ouch, Naruto, what was that for?" complained Sakura.

"Sakura-chan, what happened to you out there?" asked Naruto. "You didn't get past the first round too! This isn't like you, Sakura-chan! You trained like crazy for this contest!"

"Yes, yes, Naruto, but I guess today just wasn't my day," lied Sakura. _"I know I shouldn't be lying to Naruto right now. I shouldn't have let him down either. I let Naruto down, I let my Pokemon down, and I let myself down. What kind of coordinator am I?"_

"Sakura-chan, there's something bothering you, isn't there?" Naruto said.

"Um, everything's fine, Naruto. You don't need to worry," assured Sakura.

"I don't think so, Sakura-chan," replied Naruto. "You know you can tell me anything. I'm always here for you, Sakura-chan."

Sakura sighed. _"That's Naruto- always by a friend's side."_ The rosette admitted, "Ok, there **is** something wrong."

"I knew it," said the blond. "So, care to tell me the story when we get back to the Pokemon Center?" Sakura simply nodded.

* * *

Sakura and Naruto sat on their respective beds as the rosette told the blond about her encounter with Tayuya the night before. After telling the story, Naruto exploded. "That idiot must be crazy!" the blond yelled.

"Calm down, Naruto. We don't even know for sure if Sasuke-kun really went to them," said Sakura.

"He's crazy to even consider it!" replied Naruto. "No wonder you were so off today, Sakura-chan."

The rosette nodded. "Yeah, so now you know the reason."

"That bastard have better not gone to them. If he did, I'm going to drag him back to reality," promised Naruto.

"Well, I guess we'll have to wait and see," Sakura stated. "We still have the rest of the day. Do you want to train with me? That should keep both of us busy for the day."

Naruto grinned and gave Sakura a thumbs up, suddenly returning to his cheerful self. "Sure, Sakura-chan! Plus, maybe that bastard Sasuke will show up sometime soon."

* * *

**Okay, I'm done! Now, if this chapter seems a little shorter, then I'm sorry, but I hope all of you still enjoyed it! Please review, review, review! Stay tuned for the next chapter! **


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